Neil Lennon: I battled depression during Hibs' title charge

Neil Lennon holds the Championship trophy aloft. Pic: SNS

The former Celtic midfielder has spoken in the past about how he struggled with his mental health during his playing days and is to speak at a charity event later this month to rise funds for mental health first aid training in Scottish football.

But now he has confessed he found himself feeling low as his efforts to guide Hibs back into the Premiership took their toll.

He said: “The job is difficult enough when you’re feeling okay. But when you suffer from a bout of depression everything is magnified. You feel ten times worse about things.

“I did have an episode of it this season for about four or five weeks and the club were great about it. They were really supportive, as were my back-room staff.

“I got through it okay and came out the other side, When you come out the other side it’s a great feeling.”

While understanding why people don’t want to talk about such issues, Lennon urged them to do, telling Sky Sports News: “What you do is put a brave face on publicly – but inside you are feeling it.

“There was a lot of people there for me, the LMA (League Managers Association) included. They were a great source of help.

“The more you talk about it to professional people, the easier it becomes to deal with.”