Sven-Goran Eriksson’s family thanks football for support after his death

The family of Sven-Goran Eriksson has thanked the football world for making his last months “unforgettable”.

The Swede, best known in England for being the country’s first overseas manager between 2001 and 2006, died on Monday aged 76 surrounded by his family.

He revealed in January that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had been told he had “best case” a year to live.

That led to an outpouring of love and support towards Eriksson, including the opportunity to manage his beloved Liverpool in a charity match at Anfield in March.

A statement from his children Lina and Johan said: “Dad told us at the beginning of this year about his serious illness and received an amazing response from friends and football fans around Europe. He was invited to several football teams in England, Italy, Portugal and Sweden.

“They shared their love for football and for dad. It was unforgettable for both him and us. He expressed his appreciation and joy and stated that such beautiful words are usually only uttered when someone has died.”

Eriksson admitted he had shed tears before and after the Liverpool ‘Legends’ match, and said: “To sit on the bench for Liverpool, that’s been my dream my whole life. Now it happened, and it was a beautiful day in all meanings.

“It’s a good finish, to finish with Liverpool, it can’t be much better than that.”

"The ashes could be thrown into the water here... it feels like home"

Sven-Göran Eriksson ❤️ pic.twitter.com/3e4sIKGoLn

— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) August 22, 2024

Eriksson led England to the quarter-finals of three major tournaments in succession, including the World Cups of 2002 and 2006.

He was appointed after a successful career in club management, notably in Italy, where