Burnley winger Aaron Lennon offers to help fellow pros suffering mental health issues
Former England star was detained under the Mental Health Act by police at the side of a road in May 2017
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AARON Lennon has offered to counsel any footballers suffering from mental health issues after his own successful battle with the illness.
The Burnley winger is a Premier League regular once more after combating depression in 2017.
The 31-year-old former England star has spoken with searing honesty about his experiences and now would be happy to offer help and advice to anyone else suffering problems.
Lennon said: "No-one has come to me and asked for anything but I would 100% be willing to offer my advice.
“If anybody wanted to speak to me about anything I would be happy to help them. I’ll always be there, my door’s open, they can come and speak to me about anything, not just off the pitch, the football, anything.
“There are probably a lot of footballers who don't want to come out and speak about it.
“It's just normal, there are going to be spells where you might not feel so great and there are going to be spells where you do feel great.
“Hopefully it does open the door for people to say that they're not okay and they're not feeling good because there's so much help out there.
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“Hopefully I can be a good example to show that you can be going through a tough time but you can get back to where you want to be, enjoying football and enjoying life again.”
Lennon was detained under the Mental Health Act in April 2017 and taken to hospital for assessment before undergoing treatment for a “stress-related illness.”
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But his comeback has been a major feel good story as he helped Sean Dyche’s team finish seventh last season, their best ever Premier League finish.
And Lennon, who will be in action against Newcastle on Monday, admits that the move to Turf Moor has saved his career.
He said: "You could say that, to an extent, definitely. I felt out of love with football for a period of time and the move definitely gave me that lift again and I started to enjoy my football.
“From the moment I got here every day has been brilliant. I'm loving it.
"It's the togetherness that the gaffer brings here to the club. It's a family. It's such a tight-knit group, the lads are really close.
“When I came in they made me feel so welcome. I can just enjoy my football, it's a great place.”
HEAT IS ON FOR TURF MOOR TOM
WHILE Aaron Lennon is back loving life at Burnley, one of their stars is considering leaving.
Tom Heaton wants to kick-start his season after injury and is willing to look at Championship options.
The England international, 32, is behind Joe Hart in the pecking order at Turf Moor and Nick Pope will return from his dislocated shoulder next month.
He wants regular football after getting limited to the Europa League tie against Olympiakos and the EFL Cup defeat to Burton this season.
Click here to find out which clubs are chasing his services in January.