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21st Aug 2024

Sven-Goran Eriksson delivers poignant final goodbye and reveals how he would like to be remembered

Charlie Herbert

‘Don’t be sorry, smile.’

Sven-Goran Eriksson has delivered a poignant final goodbye and revealed how he would like people to remember him as part of a new documentary looking back on his life.

In January this year, the former England manager revealed he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and had been told he had just a year to live.

Now, Prime Video has announced it is releasing a new documentary, titled ‘Sven‘, which looks back on his managerial career and charts his final months.

As part of the documentary, Sven delivers a poignant message next to a lake in Sunne, his Swedish home, the Mirror reports.

He tells viewers: “I had a good life. I think we are all scared of the day when we die, but life is about death as well. You have to learn to accept it for what it is. Hopefully at the end people will say, yeah, he was a good man, but everyone will not say that.

“I hope you will remember me as a positive guy trying to do everything he could do. Don’t be sorry, smile. Thank you for everything, coaches, players, the crowds, it’s been fantastic. Take care of yourself and take care of your life. And live it. Bye.”

You can watch the trailer for ‘Sven’ below.

Eriksson became the first foreign England manager when he was appointed in 2001 and subsequently led the team to the quarter-finals of two World Cups and one European Championship.

During this time, he managed what was dubbed a ‘golden generation’ of England players, which included the likes of Wayne Rooney, David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, John Terry, and Ashley Cole.

Beckham and Rooney both feature in the Prime documentary.

Since his terminal cancer diagnosis, Eriksson has spent his time at his Swedish home in Sunne with his family. The documentary shows him enjoying meals and playing cards with his son Johan, daughter Lina and his partner of 15 years Yaniseth Bravo.

Talking about his treatment in recent months, the 76-year-old says: “Life is not 100 per cent. I’ve had ­injections for many months, now they [doctors] change to taking pills.

“It is a lot of big effects on the throat and the nose, but that is part of it and I can live with that.

“I know life will not last forever. But I am OK.”

The Mirror reports that the former manager was not well enough to travel to London to promote the doc, and was represented by his children at the launch.

Since his diagnosis, Eriksson has managed to fulfil a lifelong dream of managing Liverpool and has also been given some emotional farewells by his former clubs.

Sven is coming to Prime Video on Friday, August 23.

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