Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson has revealed that he has “best case a year” to live after being diagnosed with cancer.
The 75-year-old managed England for five years and led the team to the quarter-finals of the 2002 and 2006 World Cup, as well as the 2004 Euros.
The football manager stepped down from his role as the sporting director at Swedish club Karlstad 11 months ago because of health issues. Opening up about his condition on the Swedish radio station, P1, he said: “Everyone can see that I have a disease that’s not good, and everyone supposes that it’s cancer, and it is. But I have to fight it as long as possible.
© Getty“I know that in the best case it’s about a year, in the worst case even less. Or in the best case I suppose even longer. I don’t think the doctors I have can be totally sure; they can’t put a day on it.”
Sven-Goran, who enjoyed a 42-year career in management, said he was trying to stay positive. “It’s better not to think about it,” he said. “You have to trick your brain. I could go around thinking about that all the time and sit at home and be miserable and think I’m unlucky and so on.
© Getty“It’s easy to end up in that position. But no, see the positive sides of things and don’t bury yourself in setbacks, because this is the biggest setback of them all of course.”
The former sporting director explained that he was running five kilometers before he went to hospital and “collapsed and fainted”.
“I’m not in any major pain. But I’ve been diagnosed with a disease that you can slow down but you cannot operate. So it is what it is,” he added.
© GettyFrom 2001 to 2006, Sven-Goran coached the “golden generation” of footballers, including the likes of David Beckham, Wayne Rooney Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.
