Fernando Ricksen's shattered family have relived the heartbreaking moment he revealed to them he was suffering with motor neurone disease.

Rangers legend Ricksen passed away aged 43 last week after a warrior-like six-year battle with the illness.

The icon was a fighter on and off the pitch and his mum, Anneke and brother Pedro have always been proud of their 'Nano'.

Fernando Ricksen's mother Anneke 'will not be able to attend funeral' of Rangers legend

He fought alcohol problems during his life that, ultimately, he was able to banish.

When Anneke and Pedro recognised their loved one wasn't acting his normal boisterous self back in 2013, they thought his problems may have returned to haunt him again.

However, speaking to the Athletic, grieving Anneke recalled the moment her life changed after learning of the real upcoming battle her boy was facing.

She said: "He had nothing after his first wife had gone.

"He had no home, no nothing. 

Fernando Ricksen's funeral procession to travel past Ibrox Stadium

"He lived six months with Pedro and then he was here with his wife. 

"When he was at Fortuna, Pedro said something must have happened to him. Is it pills, is it drinking? Nothing. 

"But something was different. He went to the hospital with what he thought was a hernia in his back, so they operated.

“After that he could not walk.

"His trainer came to get him but he couldn’t go. We thought the operation wasn’t good but then we got a second opinion in Belgium. 

"That day we went out to eat and he said ‘by the way, I am ALS’. None of us ate. 

"I work in the hospital so I knew what it was. ‘Mum, I have ALS'."

Pedro added: "He told us that he was going to go on TV to tell it.

"That week he went on, everyone thought he had been drinking because his voice was going and he wasn’t in control when walking. 

Rangers to pay for funeral of club legend Fernando Ricksen

"There was a moment between us on the phone after the show. He asked me if I had seen it and we both started crying. 

"But he had the confidence to beat it. It wasn’t that he was saying it on TV and it was different at home."

Further heartbreakingly, Anneke will miss Fernando's funeral this week as she is unable to leave her ill husband.

We told how friends of Ricksen and former teammates left messages of love and condolence for his wife Veronika and daughter Isabella, six.

The likes of Lorenzo Amoruso, Nacho Novo and Peter Lovenkrands all told how they'll miss their pal.