Eriksson fulfils Liverpool dream

Sven-Goran Eriksson says it was 'absolutely beautiful' to fulfil his Liverpool dream, after an emotional afternoon at Anfield.

Former England Manager Sven-Goran Eriksson has thanked Liverpool and its fans after the 76-year-old fulfilled a lifelong ambition to manage Liverpool Football Club.

Speaking shortly after the conclusion of the latest LFC Legends Match (which the Reds won 4 - 2), Eriksson said the day had been "absolutely beautiful".

Eriksson revealed in January this year that had been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  Whilst discussing his condition, the Swedish manager also revealed that both he and his father are lifelong Liverpool fans and that his dream had always been to manage the Reds.  Within hours of his announcement, fan groups began campaigning for Eriksson to be added to the upcoming Legends Match, with former players such as Robbie Fowler backing the idea, as well as current boss Jurgen Klopp extending an invitation for Eriksson to join him for the day at Anfield.

Those calls were quickly answered, with Eriksson being added to the Reds management team, alongside club Legends, Sir Kenny Dalglish, Ian Rush, and John Barnes.

Leading up to the match, Eriksson had expressed his gratitude to LFC and spoke about how emotional the day would be, and so it proved, as 60,000 fans gave a special rendition of "You'll Never Walk Alone" as he made his way onto the pitch before the match.

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Speaking to reporters after the final whistle, Eriksson went on to say,

"That will be a huge memory in life.  Absolutely beautiful."

"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."

"The crowd, the game, the players, everything, fantastic, and thank you to Liverpool for giving me this opportunity, to invite me for such an important game - it's not points, but the importance of the game is incredible."

"It was full of emotions, tears coming.  It's been my dream club all my life - even when I had England, I also supported Liverpool, but I couldn't say it at that time."

"It's a good finish, to finish with Liverpool, it can't be much better than that."

Today's Legends Match was the eighth charity match to be held at Anfield, with all monies raised from ticket sales going directly to the LFC Foundation, which helps families and charities in the Merseyside area, and across the UK.  The events have so far raised over £6million.

If you would like to support the LFC Foundation and the amazing work it does throughout our communities, you can donate via the Official Liverpool FC Foundation website.

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