PHOTO: Bildbyrån
On Saturday, Sven-Göran Eriksson’s dream will come true.
Getting to coach the favorite club Liverpool becomes another piece of the puzzle in the love story of “Svennis” and British football.
– There is something special about England, says Eriksson in an interview with CNN.
Greetings have poured in from all over the world after the coaching icon Sven-Göran Eriksson at the beginning of the year told that he had cancer and at best has a year left to live.
From Liverpool came the news that the club would like to fulfill the 76-year-old’s lifelong dream of coaching his favorite team. On Saturday, it will come true when Eriksson is part of Liverpool’s leadership team during a charity match against Ajax at Anfield.
The article continues below.
For “Svennis”, the national team captain for England 2001–2006, the warm relationship with the British Isles is thereby deepened.
– I don’t know if football was really born there, but more or less anyway. And the Premier League is the best league in the world today. To be the national team captain in England, it’s something big – perhaps the most powerful job you can have, says Eriksson to CNN.
Despite the fact that the cancer is incurable, he tries to keep his spirits up.
– The doctors say I’m not okay, but I feel quite okay. I know what I have, I know it’s cancer and that it can’t be cured. You just have to try to slow it down as best you can, says Sven-Göran Eriksson.
– It’s a bit of a struggle, but I don’t sit huddled in a corner and cry. I live pretty much the way I did before, and that’s okay. I’m still standing up.
READ MORE: Daniel Nannskog reveals what he really thinks of Jon Dahl Tomasson – now says what many Swedes agree with
Facts about Svennis:
Born: 5 February 1948 in Sunne.
Clubs as players: Torsby, Sifhälla, Karlskoga.
Clubs as coaches: Degerfors (1977–1978), IFK Gothenburg (1979–1982), Benfica, Portugal (1982–1984), Roma, Italy (1984–1987), Fiorentina, Italy (1987–1989), Benfica (1989–1992), Sampdoria , Italy (1992–1997), Lazio (1997–2001), Manchester City, England (2007–2008), Notts County, England (Sporting Director 2009–2010), Leicester, England (2010–2011), Tero Sasana, Thailand ( sporting director 2012), al-Nasr, United Arab Emirates (technical advisor 2013), Guangzhou, China (2013–2014), Shanghai (2014–2016), Shenzhen, China (2016–2017), IF Karlstad (sporting advisor 2022–2023) .
Countries as confederation captains: England (2001–2006), Mexico (2008–2009), Ivory Coast (2010), Philippines (2019).
Main merits: Swedish champion, cup champion and Uefa cup champion with IFK Göteborg, league and cup champion with Benfica, cup champion with Roma, Sampdoria and Lazio. Italian champion and winner of the Cup Winners’ Cup with Lazio. Reached the quarter-finals with England in WC 2002, EC 2004 and WC 2006.
Sign up for our newsletter
Share