Lucas Radebe grew up as one of 11 children in one of the toughest areas of Soweto during one of the most violent times in South Africa under apartheid. That he went on to became one of the English Premier League's most respected players - and South Africa's most-capped footballer, with 70 appearances for Bafana Bafana - is in many ways a miracle.

Radebe rose to prominence when he was appointed captain of Leeds United in the English Premiership in 1998, taking charge of a team filled with promising youngsters and some veterans. Under his leadership the Yorkshire club went on to become the force in English football it once had been.

Radebe's contribution was two-fold: leadership and performance. He was recognised as one of the finest defenders in the Premier League, and earned universal respect from players and fans.

Early days
That status was light years removed from his upbringing. Growing up in Diepkloof Zone Four in Soweto township outside Johannesburg, Radebe was regularly witness to violent incidents.

His breakthrough came in 1989, when talent scouts spotted him and signed him up to play for one of Africa's most glamorous clubs, Kaizer Chiefs.

Thebe Mabanga, in the Mail & Guardian, writes that South African fans remember Radebe in his Kaizer Chiefs days as "a lanky, flamboyant central midfielder who switched to central defence with ease, snuffing out any opposition threat with exquisite, acrobatic scissor kicks and diving headers, and man-marking the most lethal strikers into silence"

Off the field.

Radebe's contribution on the field of play extended way beyond the conventional boundaries for South African and African footballers. His success had a lot to do with making players from Africa more marketable; now every Premiership scout is searching for the next Lucas Radebe.