Tributes Pour In For Iconic Floriana FC Ex-Player Publius Bartolo
Tributes are pouring in for legendary Floriana FC ex-player Publius Bartolo after it was announced that he sadly passed away earlier this morning.
Bartolo played his first game with Floriana FC on 25th April 1964, kickstarting his life-long involvement with the club.
“Publius Bartolo managed to make the breakthrough to the senior team in a golden era when Floriana FC produced the finest footballers in the local game thanks to the legendary Floriana Ajax team,” the football team wrote.
“‘Pullu’, as affectionately known from the whole Floriana community, played also for the Floriana Grasshoppers, a team that had to its name various local players born in Floriana back in time.”
His football career also saw him playing for Luqa St Andrew’s FC. In recent years, Bartolo remained acquainted with the Floriana FC community thanks to his ownership of the club’s bar and restaurant, The Granaries.
“Anyone who was born and raised in Balzunetta knows Pullu as a hard-working man with a heart of gold,” one Floriana resident wrote.
Only last Saturday, legendary Floriana FC player Lolly Borg also passed away at the age of 88. Considered to be one of the greatest local footballers of all time, Borg had made his Floriana FC debut at just 16 years of age.