Rangers hero Fernando Ricksen weighs six stone and wears oxygen mask ten hours a day as he fights motor neurone disease

FERNANDO RICKSEN says he hopes to extend his life by wearing an oxygen mask for ten hours a day.

The Rangers icon, 42, uses the breathing aid to help his lungs weakened by motor neurone disease.

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The Dutch star, in an Airdrie hospice, said: “It gives my muscles a rest.”

And Ricksen joked that wearing his mask makes him a ringer for Darth Vader.

He drew comparisons with the Stars Wars villain as he refuses to let his struggle with motor neurone disease rob him of his sense of humour.

He told how the breathing aid takes the strain off his weakened lungs for long spells — and of his hope that it will keep him alive for longer.

I have been feeling very tired, even after a good sleep. I’ve had very vivid dreams and a splitting headache when I wake up.

Fernando Ricksen

Speaking from his bed at St Andrew’s Hospice, Ricksen, who now weighs just over six stone, said: “Nowadays I look like Darth Vader.

“I joked with the staff ‘Look at me, I look like Darth Vader’.

“Doctors at the hospice had advised me to start using the mask about a month ago.

"Lately I have been feeling very tired, even after a good sleep.

“I’ve had very vivid dreams and a splitting headache when I wake up.

“It depends on how I feel, but I now always try to get a good couple of hours sleep, with the mask, during the day.”

The Dutch star added: “The most benefit you get from it is during the night in combination with a good sleep.

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“It gives my muscles, around my lungs, a rest. Hopefully it is another tool to extend my life with MND.”

Ricksen’s mask quip came four months after we revealed how the former defender — diagnosed with the muscle-wasting illness in 2013 — confirmed he’d spend the rest of his life in the hospice.

He moved there from hospital in November after falling ill at an Ibrox bash.

Medics ruled him too unwell to return home to Spain, where wife Veronika, 32, and daughter six-year-old Isabella live.

And he admits the biggest change in recent weeks has been the introduction of oxygen support — and his initial fears at using the “scuba diving” type gear.

He said: “A couple of years ago experts tested my breathing and advised me to use the mask.

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“But because it’s a bit difficult to get used to and because I’m so stubborn, it has been in the closet all the time.

“I forgot all about it. But they advised me to recognise the symptoms and inform the doctor once I had them

“Using it is like going scuba diving. Especially in the beginning I had no idea how to breathe through it.

“At that moment, it almost scared me when I had to use it at night because I couldn’t check it when I am asleep. Now I have everything under control.

“Because my muscles keep working at full capacity 24 hours a day, you can let the mask do the work at night or day.

“But in the beginning, I thought ‘What if something goes wrong and I don’t notice it?’ I may not wake up any more.”

I still have hope and I will continue to fight. That’s one of the reasons why I have never considered euthanasia. I’m not finished yet

Fernando Ricksen

Despite his deteriorating health, the Light Blues legend still regularly sees loved ones — with Veronika and Isabella travelling over last weekend — and watches matches on a telly in his room.

And he is still positive about the future, despite having his doubters when he vowed to be the first person to beat the condition. He said: “People thought it was a weird thing to say.

“They thought it was very unrealistic. But why couldn’t I say a thing like that?

“As if we know everything about MND already — look at Stephen Hawking.

"He lived with MND for over 50 years. Isn’t that at least close to beating the illness?

“As long as I breathe, albeit through a mask, there is hope. Only when hope has gone, you’re destined to lose the fight.

“Well, I still have hope and I will continue to fight. That’s one of the reasons why I have never considered euthanasia.

“No, I’m not finished yet.”

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Hospice staff feed him peach-flavoured liquid food through a pump into his stomach.

Nurses also administer vital medicines into his arms.

Sources praised the ace for how upbeat he’s been since moving to the hospice — and admitted they’d been stunned at how he’d held on to his sense of humour.

Our insider said: “I know a lot of MND patients, but you won’t find many who are this witty – especially not at the final stage of the disease.

“This guy is so positive, it’s unbelievable. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Ricksen played 182 games for the Glasgow giants from 2000 to 2006 — netting 13 goals.

He won two leagues and Scottish Cups as well as three League Cups.

FERNANDO will attend a fundraiser for his charity at GoGlasgow Urban Hotel on June 28, with tickets on sale for £70.

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