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 Bru in 1901 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Francisco Bru Sanz | ||
| Date of birth | 12 April 1885 | ||
| Place of birth | Madrid, Spain | ||
| Date of death | 10 June 1962 (age 77) | ||
| Place of death | Málaga, Spain | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1902–1906 | FC Internacional | 27 | (0) |
| 1906–1911 | FC Barcelona | 30 | (1) |
| 1911–1915 | RCD Español | ||
| 1915–1917 | FC Barcelona | ||
| International career | |||
| 1904–1915 | Catalan XI | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1920 | Spain | ||
| 1924–1926 | RCD Español | ||
| 1927–1928 | Club Juventud Asturiana | ||
| 1928–1929 | Racing de Madrid | ||
| 1930 | Peru | ||
| 1934–1936 | Madrid CF | ||
| 1937–1939 | Girona FC | ||
| 1939–1941 | Real Madrid | ||
| 1941–1943 | Granada CF | ||
| 1948–1949 | Real Zaragoza | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Francisco Bru Sanz (12 April 1885 – 10 June 1962), also known asPaco Bru, was a Spanishfootball player, referee and manager. As a footballer he played as a striker and midfielder forFC Internacional and as a defender forFC Barcelona,RCD Español and theCatalan XI. After retiring as a player, Bru became a referee and took charge of the 1916 and 1917Copa del Rey finals. He later became the first ever manager ofSpain, guiding them to the silver medal at the1920 Olympic Games. As a manager withReal Madrid, then known asMadrid CF, he won theCopa de España twice during the 1930s.
Paco Bru began his career in the spring of 1902 withFC Internacional —when he was only sixteen years — playing a friendly tournament calledMedalla de la Federación Gimnástica Española (Medal of the Spanish Gymnastics Federation). He played ten out of twelve games as a striker and scored three goals, his team finishing sixth out of seven teams. On 30 November 1902, Bru made his debut in official competition, theCatalan football championship, in a 6–0 defeat toClub Español. Although in this particular match he played as a defender, he was mainly used in Internacional as a forward.
Bru won theCopa Torino in 1904, a second-level league trophy. Two years later he joinedFC Barcelona and, along withRomà Forns, helped the club win theCampionat de Catalunya three times in a row between 1909 and 1911. He also helped them win their firstCopa del Rey in 1910. In 1911 he joinedRCD Español winning two further Campionat titles and playing in another Copa final in 1915. He then returned to FC Barcelona and, together withPaulino Alcántara andJack Greenwell, helped the club win one more Campionat. During his playing career he also played at least five times for theCatalan XI. However records from the era do not always include accurate statistics and he may have played more games.
After retiring as a player Bru became a referee. According to legend, before his first game in charge he walked into the dressing room and pulled out aColt pistol from his bag. He placed the gun on a table in the middle of the room for everybody to see and when finished changing, he stuffed the pistol down his shorts. After being asked by a player what was going on, he explained he wanted to guarantee a quiet match, given that it was his first game in charge.[citation needed] Bru went on to take charge of twoCopa del Rey finals. In 1916 he was in charge asAthletic Bilbao beatMadrid FC 4–0. In the 1917 final Madrid FC returned and beatArenas Club de Getxo. In 1917 Bru also refereed a friendly between theCatalan XI and a Castile XI.
In 1920 when theRoyal Spanish Football Federation decided to send a team to theOlympic Games, Bru was one of three selectors chosen to pick the squad. However, after an initial training session, he found himself on his own. He subsequently rejected many of the players that turned up for the original session and insisted on the inclusion of moreBasque players. With a squad that includedRicardo Zamora,Félix Sesúmaga,Pichichi,José María Belauste andJosep Samitier, Bru andSpain returned from the competition with the silver medal.
The final stages of the tournament had descended into farce.Belgium won the gold medal by default afterCzechoslovakia walked off in protest during the final, unhappy with the performance of the referee. As a result, they were disqualified and a second consolation tournament was organised to decide the silver and bronze medallists. However beaten semi-finalists,France, had already returned home, so the beaten quarter-finalists played-off for the right to play the other beaten semi-finalist,the Netherlands.Spain emerged triumphant after overcomingSweden 2–1,Italy 2–0 and then beating the Netherlands 3–1 in the silver medal final.
Bru had two spells as coach atReal Madrid. During his first spell with the club he guided the team to victory in twoCopa de España finals. In 1934 he coached a team that includedRicardo Zamora,Josep Samitier andJacinto Quincoces to a 2–1 win over aValencia CF team coached byJack Greenwell. The 1936 final saw Real meetFC Barcelona for the first time in a cup final. The Madrid club beat Barcelona 2–1 at theMestalla inValencia. The final is best remembered for a save made by Zamora. During theSpanish Civil War, Bru returned to Catalonia and coachedGirona FC in theMediterranean League. In 1939 he returned to Real Madrid for a second spell as coach.
Bru was the coach of thePeru national team during the first everWorld Cup in 1930.[1]
FC Internacional
FC Barcelona
RCD Español
Spain
Madrid CF
Francisco Bru international tournaments | |||||||||||||
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