Heartwarming moment Newcastle United superfan receives match tickets for his 80th birthday

Eric Selby, a lifelong Newcastle United supporter, was almost brought to tears when his grandson Liam Ashford surprised him with tickets to see the team’s first match of the season against Nottingham Forest.

The last time Eric attended a Newcastle United game was in he 70s.

Eric started supporting Newcastle United along with his uncles when he was a young boy growing up in Gateshead and has remained a fan ever since - even inspiring his grandsons to support the team.

The video, recorded by Liam’s girlfriend Emily Winestein, was originally filmed to show to his brother Connor, who had jointly bought the tickets and couldn’t make it on the day.

Liam, 22, said “I wanted to make sure my brother would be able to see the reaction, as we knew it would be a good one"

He later posted the video on Twitter and it has since been viewed by over 1 million people, including ex-Newcastle United manager Alan Shearer, who also sent Eric a personalised video message.

Eric, who is visually impaired, said: “Things like that never happen to me - I was absolutely gobsmacked and I’m still telling everyone about it now!

"I'm looking forward to just being in St James Park with my grandson and soaking up the incredible atmosphere that I haven’t experienced since Wor Jackie (Jackie Millburn) was playing in the 70s".

The video was filmed on 24 July.