TONY MOWBRAY has opened up about his brave battle with cancer.
The 60-year-old boss was in charge of Birmingham last season before health issues forced him into resigning.
He replaced Wayne Rooney at St Andrews after he was sacked in January but managed just eight games due to his bowel cancer diagnosis coming a month later.
Mowbray revealed his family were left fearing the worst during his worst spell in hospital.
The ex-West Brom, Celtic, Middlesbrough, Blackburn and Sunderland gaffer told BBC Radio Teesside: “It’s been the toughest year of my life.
“Out of the blue, my illness was diagnosed and my world came crashing down.
“When you get an illness like what I got, it’s about the family, really.
“I remember sitting in a hospital bed, my kids had tears in their eyes not sure whether I was going to get through it or not.
“I was very, very ill. Some days, you were feeling great and other days, I would collapse and black out and find myself on the kitchen floor.”
Mowbray underwent a ten-hour operation to save his life, which proved successful.
And the EFL legend has not given up hope on one day returning to the dugout.
He said: “I do want to go back to work because football is in my blood, it’s what I do.
“I still have issues, at the moment not 100 per cent ready for work.
“I haven’t got the energy that is required to be a football manager. But I will, I’m pretty sure.
“I’m fine in myself but it’s very difficult with the condition I’m living with at the moment.
“The doctors tell me it will resolve itself in time and I look forward to that day.
“I’m going to take my amazing wife away on holiday in the next couple of weeks and in the new year.
“I’ll see what is out there, what opportunities come and hopefully my body is tells me I’m ready to go.”
