Manchester United legend Edwin van der Sar suffered a brain haemorrhage that left him in intensive care for weeks

Edwin van der Sar has already returned to the pitch after suffering a brain haemorrhage in 2023.

The former Manchester United goalkeeper celebrates his 56th birthday today and will be grateful to have recovered from his medical emergency. He enjoyed a return to football for Soccer Aid, competing in the two latest editions of the charity match for the World XI.

However, Van der Sar believes that time away from football helped him recover from the brain haemorrhage that threatened his life. He was on holiday with his wife, Annemarie, enjoying a sailing trip to Croatia just months after he stepped back from his director role at Ajax.

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Discussing the horrific incident on The Overlap earlier this year, Van der Sar explained: "I’m OK now. I had it three years ago. I had a great holiday – a sailing trip in Croatia. On the last day, in the hotel, I got up to go to the toilet and felt dizzy, and I felt my neck. I went back into the room and said, ‘Close the curtains,’ and I sat on the bed not feeling well. My wife called the doctor, and I was told I had a brain haemorrhage."

The ex-goalkeeper was sent to intensive care and spent three weeks there before leaving the hospital. He admits that being away from football benefited his recovery as it kept stress out of his life.

Van der Sar said: "One of the things that helped was that I had just quit my job at Ajax as a director. Five weeks before that I had resigned. It was a big step for me, but I felt I had brought Ajax to a point where maybe I couldn’t bring any more to the club than I already did. I was surprised because I had a great holiday, we were all relaxed, and then something like that happens to you. We went to the hospital, I was in intensive care, and I was there for three weeks.

"Then you have the recovery process and rehabilitation, and you know as a player you also want the best people around you and a programme fitted for you. I had no pressure about going back into a job – no phone calls, no emails, no decision-making – so that helped a lot to recover to the level that I am now."

Despite the major health scare, he's enjoying life just the same as he was before - just without football at the forefront. Van der Sar added: "What was nice for me was that I wanted to have a rest, take a year out of football, go to some other clubs and learn some new things.

"Now it’s almost three years ago, so I’ve had time to recover with no stress, no phone in my hand – just doing the stuff that I’ve wanted to do. Wake up when you want, walk the dog, go swim in the sea, go on holiday. I went to New Zealand for two months with Annemarie – nice things that I never had the chance to do before."