Fernando Ricksen

Zenit Saint Petersburg

Ricksen moved on loan to Zenit Saint Petersburg on a season long loan on 9 August 2006, the Russian club's manager being Dick Advocaat, who signed Ricksen for Rangers. Two weeks later he returned to Ibrox in a friendly between Rangers and Zenit and was booed after injuring Chris Burke with what was described as a reckless tackle. Weeks later, Ricksen engaged in an on-field fist-fight with Zenit captain Vladislav Radimov. On 28 November 2006, Zenit Saint Petersburg announced that they bought out Ricksen's transfer from Rangers. Despite this, Ricksen again fought with Radimov during a match in January 2007.

Return to Sittard After being without a club for more than a year, on 2 December 2010 Ricksen agreed to rejoin his childhood team Fortuna Sittard, involved in their battle to escape relegation from the Eerste Divisie, signing a contract till the end of the season.

International career Ricksen earned the first of 12 caps for the Netherlands on 15 November 2000, playing two minutes as a substitute for Paul Bosvelt in a 3–2 friendly win over Spain at the Estadio Olimpico de la Cartuja in Seville. His final cap was on 30 April 2003, a 1–1 home draw with Portugal in another friendly.

In June 2003, after a UEFA Euro 2004 qualifier away to Belarus, Ricksen got drunk and kicked down two hotel room doors. He was subsequently ostracised by manager Dick Advocaat and did not play for the Netherlands again. Ricksen denied charges of drink-driving, careless driving, committing a breach of the peace by shouting and swearing, and conducting himself in a disorderly manner. At a trial in February 2003 Ricksen was found to have been twice over the limit and was convicted of drunk-driving, receiving a £500 fine and a 12-month driving ban. Having initially denied the charges, in court Ricksen admitted conducting himself in a disorderly manner, causing a breach of the peace, repeatedly igniting fireworks, shouting and swearing and then threatening and assaulting a neighbour who had complained. During the 2004–05 football season, Ricksen abstained from alcohol. In July 2006 Ricksen checked himself into the Sporting Chance Clinic for residential treatment relating to alcohol abuse and anger management. For the previous six months he had been receiving out-patient treatment from the clinic.

Ricksen's daughter Isabella was born in 2011. In 2014 Ricksen married Veronika, who is Russian. A documentary titled Fernando Ricksen: Hard Times was aired on Sky Sports 1 on 3 May 2015. Ricksen was Catholic but later revealed his wish to convert to Orthodoxy.

Ricksen wrote an autobiography, Fighting Spirit, which was published in 2014.

Illness and death On 30 October 2013, Ricksen revealed that he was terminally ill and had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (motor neurone disease). He set up a charity that raised over £1 million for research into the condition.

Ricksen died on 18 September 2019 in St Andrew's Hospice in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland, aged 43. His funeral was held at Wellington Church in Glasgow on 25 September, attended by dignitaries of Celtic and Rangers, after which he was cremated at Linn crematorium, in a private ceremony.

Honours Fortuna Sittard Eerste Divisie: 1994–95

AZ Eerste Divisie: 1997–98

Rangers Scottish Premier League: 2002–03, 2004–05 Scottish Cup: 2001–02, 2002–03 Scottish League Cup: 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05

Zenit Saint Petersburg Russian Premier League: 2007 Russian Super Cup: 2008 UEFA Cup: 2007–08 UEFA Super Cup: 2008

Individual PFA Scotland Players' Player of the Year: 2004–05 Rangers F.C. Hall of Fame: inducted in 2014