A great footballer and a domestic tyrant. 10 years ago, Barcelona's first African player Steve Mokone passed away

On March 19, 2015, the life of one of the iconic players in the history of South African football, Steve Mokone, came to an end in a Washington hospital. The Dailysports team invites you to look back at his football and off-the-field life.

Mokone made a name for himself in South Africa at the age of 16 and could have moved to Newcastle back then, but his father opposed the move, wanting Steve to get an education.

The move to England eventually happened when he was 23, as Coventry decided to sign him. Although Mokone played in only four matches, his transfer was already a revolution, as he became Coventry's first black player in the English Football League.

He became more legendary for Dutch club Heracles, leading them to victory in the third-tier league of the Netherlands. Incidentally, he became the first foreign player in the history of this country. After two years in the Netherlands, he moved to Cardiff, and after playing three matches for them, he transferred to Catalan club Barcelona.

For African football, this was an unprecedented event, as he became the first representative of the continent in the "Blaugrana" squad. He couldn't secure a place in Barcelona either, and after stints at Torino, Valencia, as well as clubs in Canada and Australia, he ended his career in 1964 and settled in the USA.

His time in the States was less bright. In 1978, he was found guilty of assaulting his wife and her attorney during a divorce proceeding. As a result, he spent over ten years in prison, being released in August 1990.

Mokone himself did not consider himself guilty, believing he was deliberately targeted due to his connections with the left-wing ANC, which opposed apartheid and was considered a terrorist group by the CIA.

Mokone's life journey ended on March 19, 2015, at the age of 82. He never learned that his daughter Thandi confirmed all the allegations of domestic violence after his death, stating that her father inflicted physical abuse and sexualization upon her.