KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 31 — A 71-year-old Malaysian father of five shed tears of joy after finally being able to watch his beloved English football team, Liverpool, live at Anfield.
In a video shared online, Mahmud Ali, was seen in tears as he watched the atmosphere at Liverpool’s home ground during the team’s match against Manchester City on October 16.
He was also seen singing the You’ll Never Walk Alone anthem alongside other fans during the match.
Liverpool won the match 1-0, with the winning goal scored by Mahmud’s favourite player, Mohamed Salah.
Mahmud’s daughter, Farazathul, who had uploaded the TikTok video, shared with Malay Mail that her father thought they were just there to visit the Anfield stadium and he was happy enough to be able to have a tour around the stadium.
Little did he know that his son, Firdauz, would surprise him with a match ticket to catch the Reds going head-to-head against one of the biggest English Premier League clubs that weekend.
“When we told him we’re going to Anfield, he was so happy like a child and was in disbelief. He was actually happy enough with just a tour around the stadium.
“That’s when my brother surprised him with the tickets. He was tremendously happy, and he was sobbing in disbelief when we talked via video call,” Farazathul said.
She added that Mahmud actually prayed for Liverpool to win that day as it was a rare occasion for him to catch the match in person.
@littlepintobeans Mans a Liverpool fan all his life he actually wanted to hop on a ship and migrated there when he was 18. Did not happen. My brother surprised him and mum for a one in a lifetime trip. YNWA!!!! #ynwa #liverpoolfc #kitamenangmalamni original sound - Charlie Fa
Mahmud had just recovered from acute pancreatitis which had left him hospitalised last year and had to undergo surgery.
Although the doctors told them that Mahmud had a 50-50 chance or survival, Mahmud managed to bounce back from the surgery after a few months of recovery before his son surprised him and his wife with a trip to the United Kingdom.
“My father, when he was little, came from a very poor family. They were so poor to the point they couldn’t even afford to buy a tombstone for their late father.
“There was a time when a shipping company came to Malaysia and was looking for sailors, my dad thought of getting onboard and had even planned to migrate to Anfield.
“But his mother begged him not to go and so he stayed,” said Farazathul.
She added that her father then worked as a blue-collar technician at TNB, then known as Lembaga Letrik Negara.
“He worked there until he retired. His salary was only RM300 when he first got married to my mom.
“And he is such a great father to us all. He worked so hard, sometimes he would take an overtime shift which they called ‘break dawn’ just to save money so that he could buy us Lion King pyjamas.
“I’m so glad my brother decided to present him with this gift,” she said, adding that her brother who is a general manager in KL has worked hard to present their parents with the gift.
@littlepintobeans Here's a video my lovely brother made. Alhamdulillah my dad's lifelong dream is finally materialized. He was a blue collar worker who sacrificed everything to raise our family, and now he's finally with his #liverpoolfc family #ynwa #liverpoolvsmancity #youllneverwalkalone #dad You'll Never Walk Alone - Gerry And The Pacemakers
She said that apart from Liverpool, her father is also a fan of local football club Selangor FC and would often bring Farazathul and her siblings to watch the Red Giants live.
Farazathul’s TikTok video has garnered over 800,000 views with over 80,000 likes and comments from social media users who were touched by the video.
