A former Cardiff City footballer has been found guilty of stabbing a man in the back in London.
Ibrahim Meite, now 25, who played for Cardiff City in 2017 before moving on to Crawley Town, was also stabbed in the incident on the morning of September 12, 2019.
During a trial at Kingston Crown Court, prosecutor Max Hardy said it was "unlikely this was a chance passing" when Meite encountered Rio Amos, 24, after driving his white Mercedes to the "quiet residential street" with Leon Hughes, 33, in the front passenger seat, MyLondon reports.
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He told the court that CCTV footage showed the pair getting out of the car and Meite engaging Amos in conversation, "moving from side to side" before he "sidles around his back".
Mr Hardy said Meite stabbed Amos in the back, "catching him unawares" while his "attention was split between the two men".
Amos was said to have then produced a larger blade and stabbed Meite after he fell over while running from the scene, the court heard.
The former footballer told the court he never had a knife and only intended to punch Amos "to wind him".
Meite added he had come across Amos by chance when driving with Hughes and wanted to "clear the air" after "a dispute" involving a girl in a nightclub which ended in "pushing and shoving". Both of the injured men were treated in hospital.
After several days of deliberations, on Wednesday the jury found Meite, of Roehampton, South West London, guilty of wounding with intent, an alternative charge of unlawful wounding and possession of a knife.
Amos, of Wandsworth, South West London, was found not guilty of wounding with intent and a verdict was not reached on unlawful wounding, leading to the jury being discharged.
Hughes, of Merton, South West London, who was accused of helping the footballer carry out an attack, was found guilty of unlawful wounding and not guilty of wounding with intent, possession of a knife and intending to pervert the course of justice.
A mention hearing is due to take place on February 25. Meite and Hughes will be sentenced at a later date.
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