“He came with six litres of wine” - Terminally-ill ex-England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson opens up on heart-warming gesture from David Beckham

Former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson heaped praise on Manchester United legend David Beckham, recalling a heartfelt gesture from his former protege. He revealed that Beckham visited him in Sweden and even brought six litres of wine.

Speaking to Swedish radio channel P4 Varmland, Eriksson stated that Beckham paid him a visit in Sweden and spent a day discussing football. Talking about the former Real Madrid star's visit, Eriksson revealed (via GOAL):

"He came with six litres of wine from dates that were important to me. He had wine from 1948 – the year I was born, very nice of him. He is genuine, he could have been a big diva, but he is quite the opposite."

He added:

"He ate herring and potatoes and elk meat. The previous day he had sent a chef who fixed the food, and then he came and was here for a day. We sat chatting, a lot about football. It confirms, in a way, how great he is. He didn’t have to come here. I felt proud that he came."

David Beckham played 56 matches under Sven-Goran Eriksson for England. He scored 16 goals in those games while assisting 20 times for the Three Lions.

Sven-Goran Eriksson is a big fan of David Beckham on and off the field

Sven-Goran Eriksson spoke about David Beckham in an interview back in 2013, stating that the former LA Galaxy star was the biggest sports personality in the world. He told the BBC:

"He's a fantastic footballer, fantastic man and probably the world's biggest sports personality. I don't think there is any other football player more popular than him. He was a very, very good captain. I remember all the matches with England and all the travelling - airports, hotels - it was all about Beckham, all the time."

He added:

"David had missed many free-kicks during that game, but was mentally very strong to take it when it was almost overtime, and he scored. His biggest quality was that he was extremely professional in everything he was doing - and his right foot was not bad. In some way I suppose he will stay in football, I'm quite sure about that, as an ambassador or a coach. I'm not sure he wants to be a manager."

Sven-Goran Eriksson is suffering from pancreatic cancer. The former England manager revealed the same in January 2024 – 11 months after leaving the sporting director role at Swedish club Karlstad.