Ex-England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson says his final dream is to watch England play against Brazil at Wembley in two months’ time.
The 75-year-old coaching legend revealed this week that he has around a year to live ‘at best’ after being diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer.
He has vowed to ‘fight as long as I can’ and, in a new interview, said he plans to continue travelling to watch football for as long as his illness will allow him to.
Speaking to Sky News, a smiling Eriksson warmly said that the days where he is without pain are a ‘great gift in life’ – as he revealed plans to travel to Wembley in two months’ time to watch England take on Brazil in an international friendly.
He told the channel that he would hope the Three Lions would go on to face the South American side in the final of the 2026 World Cup in North America.
Sven-Göran Eriksson hopes to travel to Wembley to watch England take on Brazil in March
Eriksson waves to fans while attending a match between Lazio, which he formerly managed, and Roma in March last year
Eriksson managed England between 2001 and 2006, nurturing some of the team’s best-ever footballers but ultimately failing to notch up international success
And he also revealed his unfulfilled wish to have coached Liverpool – a team he and father Sven both adore – during a stellar domestic management career.
Eriksson said his wish for his final days was ‘to be healthy, to not have too much pain, waking up with almost no pain, that’s a great gift in life.
‘I hope many many days still to wake up and be rather healthy. Travelling, looking at a lot of football, still, television.
‘I hope maybe to go to England and see England-Brazil in March, that should be very nice, great game, like a warm-up for the World Cup. That could also be the final in the [2026] World Cup, so that would be great.’
Eriksson’s management career took him from his native Sweden, where he managed sides such as Degerfors and IFK Göteborg, to Italy and then England, where he inspired great loyalty from his squad despite difficulties on the international stage.
He became a guiding hand for a golden generation of stars such as David Beckham, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney – the strong Scouse presence in his line-ups speaking to his love of Liverpool FC.
It’s an adoration he shares with his father, also called, Sven. He added to Sky: ‘I always wished to be the manager of Liverpool and that will not happen, but I’m still a Liverpool fan.’
Eriksson’s time with England is remembered as much for his personal affairs as it is for his frustrating close calls with glory as he managed England from 2001 until 2006, which saw the side reach three international tournaments.
The intimate details of his affair with TV host Ulrika Jonsson dominated front and back pages for weeks before Eriksson went back to long-term partner Nancy Dell’Olio, an Italian lawyer. He also had an affair with FA secretary Faria Alam.
After parting ways with England, Eriksson went on to enjoy short-lived spells with Manchester City, Mexico, Notts County, Ivory Coast and Leicester City, as well as with a number of teams in China.
He had most recently been working as sporting director of Karlstad in his native Sweden, but his departure from the club last year ‘due to health issues which are under investigation’ prompted speculation.
Sven Goran Eriksson (pictured this week) has told Swedish radio he has cancer and may only have a year to live
The football manager was England boss between 2001 and 2006. Sven pictured with David Beckham after dumped out of the 2006 World Cup by Portugal in the quarter final
Sven with his former partner Nancy Dell’olio
He has since revealed he collapsed during a run last year, at which point he was hit with the details of his diagnosis.
In an interview with Sweden’s P1 radio station, he said he had been given ‘maybe at best a year, at worst a little less, or at best maybe even longer. You can’t be absolutely sure. It is better not to think about it’.
He also told BBC World Service’s Sporting Witness: ‘I thought I was fully healthy, but suddenly I got like a stroke, small strokes, so I fall.
‘My children took me to the hospital and after one day of examination they told me that I got five small strokes but that’s okay they said, no problem, you will recover 100 per cent from that.
‘But worse is they said you have cancer which we can’t operate and we will give you treatment, medicine and you’ll live as long as possible. But I have that diagnosis and they can’t operate it.
‘When you get a message like that I think you appreciate every day and you’re happy when you wake up in morning and you feel okay. So that’s what I’m doing.’
Football fans have been united in their support for the manager since the news broke, commending him for remaining upbeat in the face of adversity – and throughout his Sky interview Eriksson was seen to smile as he spoke of confronting the tragic and inevitable.
Commenting on the interview online, one fan said: ‘Such humility and acceptance from someone who knows their fate, yet such a good attitude. A great example to everyone to enjoy every day we have.’