South African football icon Dr. Jomo Sono admits Aaron Mokoena was one of the players who shocked him when he was first discovered.
Mokoena, is the record holder for the most caps for the South Africa national team with 107, amassed between 1999 and 2010.
He made his professional debut in the Premier Soccer League at 16 for Jomo Cosmos before spending 13 years of his career in Europe with Bayer Leverkusen, Ajax Amsterdam, Germinal Beerschot, Genk, Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth before retiring at Bidvest Wits.
“Aaron Mokoena… it was unbelievable, when he first came to training, they said he was 16,” Sono said on the Bettor Podcast.
“So, he was big for 16, giving a proper age, not a passport age when he said 16. And when he came, we organised a game and I said, ‘are you 16?’, he said yes because I told him to bring his school papers, his ID and the papers from the hospital where he was born.
“He brought everything, and I signed… by the age of 17 he played for Bafana Bafana as I was the coach there.”
Mokoena is now currently working with the South African Football Association (SAFA) as a scout and assistant coach with the national U20 squad.
