Michael Mols has said he is 'lucky to be alive' after an emergency operation to remove a golf ball-sized tumour from behind his eye.

The Rangers hero was taken to a hospital in Amsterdam for the life-saving procedure in October.

In a recent interview, the 52-year-old said he initially thought that balance problems he was having were caused by a knee injury.

It was not until his family noticed a change in his personality that something more sinister was happening.

An emergency MRI revealed Mols had a two-inch tumour behind his left eye that required an eight-hour operation to remove.

The striker told the Daily Record: “Initially I thought I’d be fine, that I’d recover and not have a problem.

"I didn’t realise what they were saying to me, the risks they were warning me of.

“When my family heard that I had a brain tumour and was going for surgery, they were all very emotional – but I was relaxed.

“But now I realise why they reacted that way and I realise just how lucky I am to be here, alive and feeling healthy again.

"Having learned what could have happened, I’m just so thankful for that.”

READ MORE Rangers legend Michael Mols undergoes brain tumour operation

Surgery to remove brain tumours can have several side effects including impacting speech and mobility.

Mols played for Glasgow Rangers between 1999 and 2004 as a striker.