Tragic legacy of forgotten Man Utd star at centre of scandal that rocked football before going on to manage Barcelona

A FORGOTTEN Man United star who found himself caught up in one of football’s biggest scandals lay in unmarked grave for half a century.

Patrick O’Connell came from Ireland and after stints at Sheffield Wednesday and Hull, joined United for a fee of £1,000 in 1914.

Patrick O’Connell found himself caught up in one of football’s biggest scandals

Mirorrpix

He lay forgotten in an unmarked grave for half a century until he was properly commemorated[/caption]

He was capped 24 times and captained the side in what would become the infamous 1914-15 season.

Not only was it the last before a five year football hiatus as WW1 raged, but the season would usher in a scandal that brought the game to its knees.

On April 2, 1915, Manchester United faced Liverpool in what appeared to be a normal league game at Old Trafford.

But there was a catch – the Good Friday game had been fixed in United’s favour and all the players were in on it.

Players from both sides believed the war would leave them unemployed and penniless so placed bets on the game and were set to make a killing.

But their plan fell apart when seven players were found to be in the illegal ring.

They were: Sandy Turnbull, Arthur Whalley and Enoch West of United, and Jackie Sheldon, Tom Miller, Bob Pursell and Thomas Fairfoul of Liverpool.

All were subsequently banned for life, but most had them overturned.

O’Connell was not found to have taken part but his wide penalty during the match saw him caught up in the scandal.

The Irishman stayed with United throughout the war and played as a guest at Clapton Orient (now Leyton Orient), Rochdale and Chesterfield.

O’Connell moved to Dunbarton FC before leaving Ashington FC in 1922 for a managerial career in Spain.

He went on to manage Barcelona, whom he saved from ruin, and Sevilla.

But it was at Real Betis where he took the team to their only ever La Liga title in 1935.

His exploits at at the club earned him the nickname “Don Patricio”.

After 35-years in Spain, which included a 27-year managerial stint which overlapped with the Spanish Civil War, O’Connell returned to the UK and died in 1959.

He lay in an unmarked grave at St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery in North London until May 2016 when it was given the attention it needed.

A headstone was put up, which reads: “Remembered by many in Ireland, England and Spain.”

In 2017, a bust was put up in his honour at Betis’s Estadio Benito Villamarín stadium.

A mural commemorating the legend later appeared in West Belfast

Alamy

A mural commemorating the legend later appeared in West Belfast[/caption]