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Ferdinand Tells Of Heartbreak At Wife's Death

Ferdinand Tells Of Heartbreak At Wife's Death

Former England captain Rio Ferdinand has told how the loss of his wife to cancer had been the "most difficult period" of his life.

The football star also described being "overwhelmed" at the support he had received following the death of Rebecca Ellison, who he married in 2009.

They have three children Lorenz, nine, Tate, six, and four-year-old Tia.

Sir Alex Ferguson and former Manchester United team-mate Nemanja Vidic, had been among a host of names from the world of football to attend the funeral of the 34-year-old, he revealed.

Writing in the Sun, he paid tribute to her as "an incredibly brave woman".

Ferdinand said: "It has been the most difficult period of my life, what with managing the emotions of our three children and watching such a great woman as my wife Rebecca die without being able to do anything about it.

"After Rebecca died, we held a service on a lovely sunny day which was arranged to perfection.

"Rebecca was an organisational freak and planned much of it herself while the kids picked the music.

"She wanted it to be celebration of her life rather than a morbid occasion and it went just the way she would have liked."

And he said he had been touched by the messages of support his family had received from opposition teams and supporters, including fans at his former clubs West Ham and Manchester United as well as Liverpool.

"The day it was announced the Rebecca had died, we were overwhelmed by messages of support

"The kids saw it all and were telling me, 'Look Dad, have you seen what they are doing for Mum?' Those are good memories for them," he said.

"It was refreshing to see such compassion in the game, with tribalism removed.

"You can lose faith in football with some of the negativity around it.

"But then you experience what we have gone through and realise how many decent people are involved in the sport."

He added: "To those who sent messages or even just a thought about us for a moment, all I can say is a big thank you.

"Me and family really appreciate it."

The 36-year-old also said he felt "guilty" about not being able to play a full part in QPR's season, during which they were relegated from the Premier League.

His wife's battle was only known within an intimate circle of family and friends and other players at the club were unaware why he was unavailable for selection, the player said.

Announcing the death of his "soulmate" at the start of the month, the Queen's Park Rangers defender said in a statement: "She was a fantastic, loving mother to our three beautiful children.

"She will be missed as a wife, sister, aunt, daughter and granddaughter. She will live on in our memory, as a guide and inspiration."

He also said their grief as a family was "total".