Arthur Johnson (footballer, born 1879)


Arthur Johnson was an Irish football player and coach. Born in Dublin when Ireland was still part of the United Kingdom, Johnson identified himself as an "Englishman" rather than an "Irishman" according to at least one report.
In his playing days he was a center forward for Real Madrid and their first coach between 1910 until 1920. He also played as a Goalkeeper at the beginning of his career, the most important match was in the 1903 Copa del Rey Final.
He died of pneumonia aged just 50, died on May 23, 1929.

Real Madrid

He played in the first El Clásico on 13 May 1902, a 3–1 loss to FC Barcelona, in which he scored Real Madrid's first competitive goal, in 1902 Copa de la Coronación, in the first official game of Real Madrid.
Years later, he became the first coach of Real Madrid, a position that he occupied for ten seasons. Only Miguel Muñoz has been head coach for more games. It was Johnson, who influenced Madrid to play in the classic all-white strip, mirroring the strip worn by Corinthian Casuals.
As a player, Johnson won four Copas del Rey and as a manager conquered four regional championships and one Copa del Rey in 1917 before moving to Athletic Bilbao.