Martin Jol has revealed his shock at hearing of Aaron Lennon’s stress-related illness.
Martin Jol
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Martin Jol has spoken to Football.London, and offered his support to Everton winger Aaron Lennon winger after he was detained under the Mental Health Act earlier this month.
Lennon, 30, is receiving treatment for a stress-related illness after being taken to hospital at the beginning of May, as reported by BBC Sport.
The former England international featured 13 times for Everton this season, registering one goal and one assist in all competitions, and the Toffees will eventually hope to see him make a full recovery and return to football.
Lennon’s problems have again highlighted the role of mental health in football, and came just a week on from the suicide of Gaziantepspor’s Frantisek Rajtoral (The Guardian), with these two high-profile cases again suggesting that football still has some way to go when it comes to dealing with mental health issues.
The football world has come together to back Lennon during these difficult times, and his former Tottenham boss Martin Jol has now offered his support to the wide man.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman and Aaron Lennon
Jol has told Football.London that he was sad to hear the news about Lennon, and he couldn’t believe that the ex-Spurs ace was struggling in such a way, though did admit that Lennon had problems with homesickness after joining Tottenham from Leeds in 2005.
Jol hailed Lennon as a ‘special boy’ and a ‘great talent’, revealing that he told Spurs chairman Daniel Levy that he had to sign Lennon after watching him in action for Leeds.
Everton’s Aaron Lennon in action with Tottenham’s Kyle Walker
“My favourite memory was probably the Chelsea game, with Lennon scoring the winner. Last week I heard the news about him and I was so sad to hear that you know,” said Jol. “I can’t believe it. Such a great talent. I had watched a game at Leeds and I said ‘I need to get that lad’. I said that to Daniel [Levy]. He came over. He was a special boy.”
“He wanted to leave early on. He said ‘I want to leave boss. I can’t cope with the life here. Every time I’m here, the traffic’. He really wanted to go back. I convinced him to stay. I brought his brother over and then he stayed and of course he had a marvellous start to his career. It was beautiful. He was so quick. He was the quickest player in England,” he added.
If you are affected by any issues similar to Lennon, CALM is the leading charity dedicated to men’s mental health, aiming to prevent male suicide – learn more and donate here.
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