The man who saved FC Barcelona!
A PANEL exhibition about the story of Patrick O’Connell ‘The Irishman Who Saved FC Barcelona’ was held in Killinarden Community School on Tuesday.
The exhibition was funded by Dublin City Council and has been in Stormont Government Buildings in Belfast, Glasgow City Council and at the National Football Museum in Manchester.
Katy Hanley, Fergus Dowd, Linda Kerr, Cllr Kieran Mahon and 6th-year History Class from Killinarden Community School last Tuesday
Items in the exhibition include Patrick’s Irish Cap from 1914 when an All-Ireland team won the British Home Championship and a signed FC Barcelona pennant from Andreas Iniesta and the team who won the CL in 2015 against Juventus.
There is also a Real Betis replica shirt from 1935 when Patrick managed the team to a La Liga championship.
Patrick was the first Irishman to captain Man United and is attributed with saving FC Barcelona during the Spanish Civil War.
He was the only man in Spanish football history to win La Liga, Second Division and Third Division after spending nearly 30 years in management in Spain. Sadly he died penniless in London in 1959.
