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Liverpool Football Club have announced that nearly £700,000 has been raised to help support the Sean Cox Rehabilitation Trust.

Reds fan Sean suffered life-changing brain injuries back in April last year when he was attacked by a group of Roma fans outside Anfield ahead of Liverpool 's Champions League semi-final with the Serie A side.

Roma fan Simone Mastrelli was jailed for three-and-a-half years for the attack on Sean back in February, while another follower of the Italian club was sentenced to three years for violent disorder.

As a result of the violent attack, Sean was left in a coma for six weeks at Walton Neurological Centre before he was transported back to his homeland of Ireland, where he has been in recovery at Dublin's National Rehabilitation Hospital.

Earlier this year, a charity match at the Aviva Stadium, in Dublin, was played in front of over 25,000 fans who had came out to support Sean and his family.

On Friday, Sean's wife, Martina, made her first visit to Anfield to be handed a cheque from the club for €748,000 (£667,000), which was presented to her and Trust chairman Stephen Felle by Liverpool CEO Peter Moore alongside LFC Foundation director Matt Parish and Joe Blott, chair of the Spirit of Shankly.

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Back in October, Reds followers showed their support for Sean by staging a bucket collection at Anfield ahead of the visit from Cardiff City, with the money being matched by the LFC Foundation.

The ECHO understands the total fee raised to help Sean and his family on Friday is the sum of all fundraising attempts from the club and its associated charities.

Members of Liverpool's Champions League-winning squad have also privately donated, with manager Jurgen Klopp pledging £4000 to the cause last year.

(Image: Brian Lawless/PA Wire)

Reds chief Mr Moore said: "What happened to Sean was such a terrible tragedy - no football fan should go to a game and suffer what he and his family have endured.

"We have all been touched by what happened and whilst football is still a tribal game, we must come together to try and help in any way we can regardless of club colours.

"The support we have seen from football fans all over the world has shown that this game is special when everyone is united. It was incredible to see so many supporters come together and help support Sean.

(Image: 2018 Getty Images)

"I would like to thank our fans for their unwavering loyalty in supporting this game, and also the Football Association of Ireland and its partners for their generous support in helping us deliver such a magnificent event."

Mrs Cox added: "Today is my first ever visit to Anfield and, while it is tinged with some sadness given Sean cannot be with me, we are humbled by the warmth and generosity that has been shown by Liverpool Football Club, its supporters and the people of this city in taking Sean into their hearts.

"While the doctors are pleased with his progress, it is slow and Sean himself is frustrated at not being able to properly speak or express himself or do the things he took for granted before the attack.

(Image: Family handout/PA Wire)

"Sean begins the next stage in his rehabilitation later this summer when he will travel from Dublin to a specialist neurological centre in Yorkshire.

"As a family we hope and pray that we get more of the old Sean back in the years ahead.”

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Last year, Everton defender Seamus Coleman, a Republic of Ireland international, also donated to the Irish Reds fan's cause before adding a second €5,000 contribution to the GoFundMe page set up to aid Sean's rehab.

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher is another who has previously donated, with the iconic centre-back offering up £11,000 to the Sean Cox Rehabilitation Trust during a fundraising event in February.

You can still donate to the Sean Cox Rehabilitation Trust by visiting www.gofundme.com/SupportSeanCox.