A former Belfast Celtic player and Manchester United and Ireland skipper has been honoured by the Spanish club he steered to their only league title.
A bust of Dublin-born Patrick O'Connell was unveiled by Seville club Real Betis before a home game at its Estadio Benito Villamarín.
Having started on the books of Belfast Celtic, O'Connell's remarkable career was recognised hundreds of miles away on Friday with the unveiling of the bronze sculpture, commissioned by the Patrick O'Connell Memorial Fund.
The 20kg bust, with the inscription 'Patrick O'Connell, Don Patricio, Real Betis campeones 1935', was brought on an Aer lingus flight to Spain, where it had its own seat.
Created by Irish sculptor Joe Moran, it was then taken to a local supporters' club, before being carried to the stadium on Friday in a procession along the streets of Seville followed by Real Betis fans.
The bust was presented to Real Betis football club, where O'Connell is remembered for guiding the team to its only La Liga title, before the start of a match with Real Sociedad in front of 35,000 people.
It will now become a centre-piece in the club museum alongside their single league trophy, to properly acknowledge the man responsible for the greatest moment in its history.
The Patrick O'Connell Memorial Fund raised more than £10,000 for the project which was backed by some of football's biggest names including Roy Keane and Franz Beckenbauer.
The fund previously raised money for a memorial on his unmarked pauper's grave in north London.
O'Connell, the first Irishman to captain Manchester United and skipper of Ireland in the British Home Championship victory of 1913/14, also managed FC Barcelona from 1935 to 1940 and is credited with saving the club from financial ruin during the Spanish Civil War.
In 1937, he was given the title of honorary consul by the last republican government of Spain.
He later moved to London where he died destitute in 1959, with his legacy almost forgotten until recent years.
