Terzic bats away Moukoko age doubts ahead of Revierderby

Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic said the question of Youssoufa Moukoko's age had never come up in their many discussions, after it was claimed the striker could be four years older than he attests to being.

German publication Bunte this week questioned whether Moukoko was 18 years old, or whether he was 22, citing as evidence a birth certificate.

That was reportedly issued after the birth of a Youssoufa Mohamadou in Yaounde, Cameroon, with the child's date of birth given as July 19, 2000, and the father named as taxi driver Ousman Mohamadou.

Moukoko's stated date of birth is November 20, 2004, and it has been repeatedly asserted during his career that he lived for around 10 years with grandparents in Cameroon before moving to Germany in 2014 to join his father, Joseph Moukoko, in Hamburg.

Joseph Moukoko has insisted he is the player's father.

Bunte also quoted a lawyer for Dortmund youngster Moukoko as denying the player provided false age details, saying: "Youssoufa Moukoko's date of birth is November 20, 2004. This is confirmed by all the official documents that we have, along with his parents."

The teenage Moukoko was a revelation in his early years at Dortmund, scoring 127 goals in 84 appearances at youth level, earning a rapid promotion to the first-team squad.

He has since gone on to represent Germany and featured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup before signing a new Dortmund contract in January.

Terzic was asked in a press conference on Friday about the age debate circling Moukoko, and said: "I don't read Bunte. I exchange ideas with him intensively – I have never spoken to him about that. I can't confirm that it bothers him. The nasty foul in Bremen puts a strain on him."

As Terzic pointed out, Moukoko is out of action at present with an ankle injury sustained against Werder Bremen in February. It means he will miss Saturday's derby against Schalke.

Terzic said: "He's doing well in rehab, improving his performance and feeling better. We hope he will be available to us after the international break."

Dortmund are level on points with Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga with 11 rounds of games remaining.