But how old is Elia Meschack? Arriving in Bern on February 14, the new Congolese YB attacker has always maintained that he was born on August 22, 1997 and that he would therefore be 22 years old today. While he should initially have signed up with the Anderlecht Belgians, Meschack had finally opted for Switzerland at the last moment.
To date, the designated successor of Roger Assalé in the Bernese ranks has only seven minutes of play in the Super League, obtained against St. Gallen on February 23 (3-3), just before the suspension of the championship.
Kidnapping rumors
In dispute with TP Mazembe, his previous club, Meschack had been accused of forgery in the titles for having falsified his date of birth and suspended one year by the Congolese Federation. In his country, the international was also accused of having asked for political asylum in Switzerland. Other rumors claim that he was even kidnapped by crooked agents – as many accusations that the person always denied as a whole. “It is not true,” he rebelled. I traveled freely from Belgium to France and then friends helped me to come to Switzerland. “
To be able to be aligned with YB, the Congolese international (22 selections / 6 goals) had received a provisional authorization at the start of the year from the FIFA Player Status Committee as well as from the Swiss Federation authorizing him to take on the jersey No 15.
However in this incredible case, Mazembe has always claimed the fact that his former attacker was not born in 1997 but a year earlier. If this were indeed the case, Meschack would not have had the right, in 2014, to commit for more than three years in favor of the Congolese club. This one-year difference is far from trivial since it also has an influence on the transfer amount. On the official site of the SFL, the Congolese was born on August 6, 1997 while wikipedia ages him by … 365 days (August 6, 1996).
27 and not 22 …
Today, a twist. A new and most disturbing element has just been revealed by our Belgian colleagues from Last hour, an element proving wrong to all parties. On the player’s first license, which has just been found, there is indeed mention of a birth on August 6 … 1992 in Kinshasa, 5 years earlier than that announced by the player.
According to this last piece, the YB striker would be 27 years old and not 22 as he always claimed. FIFA could therefore suspend it for four to six months. Much more annoying, the reigning double Swiss champion could face a two-year recruitment ban.
We are not there yet, but what has become the Meschack affair may not yet have revealed all its secrets.
Created: 05.24.2020, 3:05 p.m.
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