Sven-Goran Eriksson diagnosed with cancer and has year left to live

He said: 'It’s better not to think about it'

Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson revealed he has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and in a “best case” scenario has around a year left to live.

Eriksson, who managed England for five years before leaving after the 2006 World Cup, stood down from his most recent role as sporting director at Swedish club Karlstad 11 months ago due to health issues.

The 75-year-old told Swedish Radio P1: “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.

“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.

“It’s better not to think about it. 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.

“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.”

Sven-Göran Eriksson is a Swedish football manager and former player, best known for his successful coaching career. Eriksson played as a midfielder but gained widespread recognition for his managerial abilities.

Eriksson managed several top football clubs and national teams. Notable among his coaching roles are his stints with the England national football team, where he managed from 2001 to 2006, guiding them to the quarterfinals in two UEFA European Championships (Euro 2004 and Euro 2012) and the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He has also managed club teams like AS Roma, Lazio, Manchester City, and Leicester City, among others.