Loyal Aston Villa fans leave me in tears, says Stiliyan Petrov
Stiliyan Petrov today revealed he is on the brink of tears every time Villa supporters pay tribute to his battle against acute leukemia during matches.
The claret and blue faithful applaud the Villa club captain in the 19th minute of every match and Petrov admitted the gesture pulled at the heartstrings.
"I just feel like crying every time and it's great appreciation from the fans," said the Bulgarian, who is now in remission after treatment for the illness.
"The fans have been supportive from the start to the present day. Even now, it's been eight months of treatment, they still support me.
"I still get cards. I get messages. I get everything to support me through this. It's been great and I appreciate it.
"That's the Villa fans. They love the club and they love the players. I have been a part of this club for quite a while and I fell in love with it. I am getting great support.
"I still go and see my team-mates when I can, when the professor tells me my count is right. It's great. I miss it. But I have another priority at the moment."
Petrov was able to attend a special charity match at Halesowen Town in his honour on Sunday which raised around £10,000 for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.
The 33-year-old paid tribute to the 3,000 fans who turned up to support the event and opened his heart on the battle against the condition which is a type of cancer of the blood.
"It was great and the turnout was just unbelievable. I was very emotional. To see so many people turnout for this game was just great," added Petrov.
"I am in remission. I had quite a lot of chemotherapy. I am in a consolidation phase at the moment. I have a few more cycles to go. It's been a long road. It's been long. It's been tough.
"But the professor, the doctors, the nurses who have been looking after me have been great, very supportive. I knew it was going to be hard from the start. I didn't know it was going to be that hard! But, at the end of the road, you get an even better person.
"Only people who have gone through this and the people around them know what it's all about. It's been hard. The support of the family has been amazing because I fight with them.
"It's emotional. You always have emotional periods. But I am battling hard. So far it is going well which is a very positive thing."
