Fans drown their sorrows at home of Barça ‘danger men’
The pub, one of three bar/restaurants owned by Dubliner Robbie Dunne in the city, catered for a mix of ex-pats, tourists and honorary Irish fans.
Marc Bruun, 30, from Copenhagen watched the match with his father-in-law and brother-in-law. All were kitted out in green Irish tee-shirts.
“I’m cheering for Ireland, definitely,” said Bruun, whose mother is from Ballina, Co Mayo.
There are approximately 13,000 Irish people living in Barcelona. Donegal man Aodh O’Byrne, 48, moved to the city 17 years ago. He’s a Barça fan. He singled out the club’s midfielder Andrés Iniesta as a danger man.
“Normally, I’d be hoping he plays well, but not tonight,” he said.
FC Barcelona provided four of Spain’s starting eleven, excluding goal-scorer Cesc Fàbregas who came on as a substitute. However, not all of the natives in Barcelona were rooting for Spain. The Catalan city has a long separatist tradition.
“At this political and economical time, we’re not very proud of Spain and its arrogance. My son supports Ireland, too. So viva Irlanda!” said María José Martin Iranzo, a 59-year-old retired school principal.
“I was going to go to Poland for the matches but my wife got pregnant,” said Cavan man Cathaldus Hartin, who watched the match beside his wife.
“Maybe it wouldn’t have been the best place to be in her condition so we did the next best thing — we came to Barcelona for the Spain match. I thought there’d be more colour. It’s very low key in the city.”
Just as well, perhaps, for the dejected Irish fans after the 4-0 defeat. “I thought we had chances. We played with spirit, but Spain were all over us,” said Conor Higgins, a 21-year-old from Derry.
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