DID YOU KNOW THE FIRST AFRICAN PLAYER TO PLAY FOR FC BARCELONA?

Alex Song

Jorge Alberto Mendonça

The first African player to don the Blaugrana strip of FC Barcelona was the Portuguses-Angolan Jorge Alberto Mendonça, signed from Atlético Madrid in 1967/1968 season (67 years after the Catalan club was founded). The major trophy he won is the Spanish Copa del Rey trophy in his first season against bitter rivals Real Madrid CF until he left the club in 1970.

It wasn’t until 1996 that the the club signed its second African player, Emmmanuel Amunike from Sporting Lisbon. The next African player to don the FC Barcelona strip was Gbenga Okunowo, when Louis van Gaal was the team’s manager. Alexandre Dimitri Song Billong aka Alex Song is the latest and seventh African player to play for the club.