Robson, who took England to the semi-finals of the World Cup in 1990, told the Mail on Sunday in an interview: "On Wednesday I will have an operation to remove the tumour and as surgeons tell me the rest of my body is clean I should be able to make a full recovery."

Robson, who in a long managerial career has taken charge of PSV Eindhoven, Porto and Sporting in Portugal, Barcelona, Ipswich Town and most recently Newcastle United, has recovered from three bouts of cancer in the last 15 years.

The former England international received a knighthood in 2002 for services to football.