The widow of former Rochdale midfielder Joe Thompson has announced she is expecting his child after undergoing IVF treatment with frozen embryos.
Thompson, who began his career at Manchester United’s academy, died last April aged 36 following a third battle with stage four lymphoma.
He is survived by his wife Chantelle and their daughters, Thailula and Athena Rae.
Chantelle, now 25 weeks pregnant, described the news as “absolutely everything,” telling ITV News that her late husband had spoken of a vision of her with a baby boy before his death.
“I know it’s never going to replace Joe obviously. Joe’s Joe. But to be able to bring his baby into the world again is beautiful,” she said.
The couple had previously endured heartbreak when their son Dre died just days before his due date.
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Chantelle revealed her relief when the IVF procedure worked on the first attempt, after years of trying.
Thompson’s playing career included spells at Rochdale, Tranmere, Southport, Bury and Carlisle United.
He is best remembered for scoring the decisive goal that kept Rochdale in League One in 2018, later honoured as Laureus’ Sporting Moment of the Year.
After retiring in 2019, Thompson became a pundit for MUTV and worked as a motivational speaker.
Chantelle has shared that he even chose a boy’s name before his passing, and she is waiting to open the email confirming the baby’s gender at a family gathering.
Reflecting on the journey, she added: “We’d gone through IVF for three years trying to get pregnant with baby Dre. But I just knew the timing was right, I knew Joe’s messages were right.”