Four-year-old terminally ill Liverpool fan delighted Jurgen Klopp fulfilled his pledge to win Premier League for him
A terminally-ill Liverpool fan is delighted to have seen his favourites win the Premier League title after manager Jurgen Klopp said his team would give everything to lift the trophy for him.
Klopp said his team will be thinking of young William Watkins during their push for the title in a personal message to the youngster earlier this month.
And William's dreams came true - and Klopp's promise - on Thursday night when the Merseyside team won their first Premier League title.
Liverpool's victory is particularly poignant for the family as without immediate chemotherapy, William's parents Ian and Nicola have been told he may only have weeks to live.
Dad Ian, also a Liverpool fan, said: "This is probably, going to be the only time that William will ever see us lift that trophy.
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"He's seen the Champions League and this will be the one time he sees what it means to all the fans and what it means to the club and players. It will mean a lot to him."
Before the Premier League resumed last week, Klopp had recorded a message, posted by the mental health charity Inch by Inch Mental Health UK, telling William: "I heard you have not the best time at the moment; I'm sorry for that.
"I really feel for you.
"But we can lift it a little bit by starting the Premier League again, and we'll play again for you."
William has also received messages of support from Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and a signed shirt from Harvey Elliott.
"I thought Jürgen Klopp was rather nice for sending that message," mum Nicola Joshua said.
"I'm not a football fan, I just follow what the boys follow, I just cheer when I'm meant to.
"Sometimes I cheer at the wrong thing and I get a dirty look.
"Football's football, but my boys love it and that's all that matters to me. Whoever my boys support, I support. So it's Liverpool all the way in our house."
The family say that if it wasn't for the Covid-19 restrictions, they would have taken William to join the celebrations in Liverpool. But they will instead enjoy them from their home in the Vale of Glamorgan.
While one dream has come true, William's illness has meant Ian is unlikely to be able to fulfill one of his own.
"One of my dreams as a father was to take him to a game of football and one game I'd like to take him to would be Liverpool games.
"But everything going on at the moment, and with time scales, that probably won't happen now.
"And that will be a regret, because every father and son should go to a game."
Nicola and Ian say they have been buoyed by the support from Klopp and his team - as well as the hundreds of good will messages they have received from people across the country.
"It's just meant too much because people are so kind,"Nicola said.
"Like I said nobody knows us, and yet our little boy is tragically ill and we don't know how long we have left, and yet people are just so kind hearted and you can't thank them enough.
"They have no idea how much it means to us as a family to see our little boy happy."