Rio Ferdinand pays lovely tribute to Liam Miller before North London Derby

The tragic news broke yesterday.

The world of football was deeply saddened on Friday by the news of Liam Miller's death. The former Manchester United, Celtic and Republic of Ireland midfielder died at the age of just 36. He had been suffering from pancreatic cancer since late last year and tragically lost his battle with the illness this week. Many former teammates and friends have paid tribute to Miller on social media and, by all accounts, he had a positive impact on everyone he met. Speaking on BT Sport before Saturday's North London derby, Rio Ferdinand spoke about Miller with great affection and eloquence. The pair played together at Manchester United between 2005 and 2007. Ferdinand described Miller as a "real, honest human. A genuine pure person." https://twitter.com/utdxtra/status/962290095243046912 Miller's footballing career took him from Cork to Celtic before his big move to Manchester United. He went on loan to Leeds United for a short period and then joined Sunderland, who were managed by Roy Keane at the time. Playing under his compatriot and mentor during his time at United, Miller won the Championship with Sunderland in the 2006/07 season. The tributes have been pouring in on social media. Miller evidently touched many lives throughout his life and career as a footballer. https://twitter.com/stevenreid12/status/962104422326292480 https://twitter.com/morrisonclinton/status/962106559894577152?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joe.co.uk%2Fsport%2Fliam-miller-162128 https://twitter.com/kdkilbane77/status/962112143335227398