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Everton's Alex Iwobi. PA

Everton star opens up on mental health - 'There is so much trauma in young black men'

Alex Iwobi was speaking at an exhibition in London to raise awareness around suicide prevention.

ALEX IWOBI HAS urged fellow footballers to look after their own mental health by not being afraid to be vulnerable.

The Everton midfielder admits he has had his own difficulties during his career and the way he coped with them was by speaking to a psychiatrist and talking to team-mates.

Mental health has become an increasingly important subject within the game and the 26-uyear-old insists seeking advice and accepting help is vital.

“Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable,” the Nigeria international said at the Beder World Cup experience, an exhibition in London designed to harness the power of the World Cup to raise awareness around mental health and suicide prevention.

“I grew up in Peckham and there was this false sense of being a man. It is only going through life – and there is so much trauma in young black men – (you learn) that if you only speak about it you’d be able to navigate it.

“There is nothing wrong with telling people ‘I’m not all right in the world. I’m just not in the right space’.

“Playing football is a big one because you are not dealing with the issue at hand, it is still there and you escape it but it is still with you.

“I feel like it is something within men, especially black men, as society is positioned not do that and if you do you are weak. Be OK being vulnerable, there is nothing wrong with it.”

Iwobi has learned to deal with his issues thanks to initially seeing a psychiatrist while he was still at Arsenal after taking advice from Arsene Wenger and he paid tribute to current boss Frank Lampard.

The Everton manager, appointed last January while Iwobi was away at the Africa Cup of Nations, has nurtured a talent which he recognised was lacking in self-confidence and as a result Iwobi has been one of his best players over the last 12 months.

“Last season I wasn’t playing as much as I’d like to and then in January I had the Africa Cup of Nations and I had that red card (at the tournament) which essentially knocked us out and it was a difficult time for me,” Iwobi added.

“I came back to a new manager with Frank Lampard and I’m grateful to him as he said ‘Why don’t you play matches the way you train?’.

“That pressure which was on my shoulders just left me. He gave me that confidence so I had that freedom to enjoy my football. Ever since I’ve had that mindset where I go into the game fearless and express myself.”

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    Mute Limón Madrugada
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    May 27th 2019, 6:43 PM

    I wouldn’t bet on him playing for Real next season just yet .

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    Mute Claire Con
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    May 27th 2019, 9:29 PM

    @Limón Madrugada: I agree, defiantly not in the league games unless he really seems to prosper. Vinicius I feel was played too often and too fast this season too. He needs to work on his finishing

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    Mute Vinny O'Shaughnessy
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    May 27th 2019, 8:48 PM

    If I was going to start playing for Real Madrid I’d probably be vomiting too. Despicable club with the most ungrateful supporters.

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    Mute Claire Con
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    May 27th 2019, 9:31 PM

    @Vinny O’Shaughnessy: this statement is completely false. Every club has a small number of toxic supporters but that’s just football. Compared to other teams we aren’t too bad. Look at serie-A fans calling black players monkeys and so on. Yes some fans fail to show respect to club legends but that’s a common trait in Spain. Barcelona fans, Atletico fans etc are the same

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    Mute Dave O Keeffe
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    May 27th 2019, 10:07 PM

    @Claire Con: all well and good to point the finger but Real Madrid fans have also racially abused black opposition player, Dembele got it in El Clásico in February. But we both know that the commenter was referring to the amount of abuse and booing Real fans give their own players at the earliest sign of any problem.

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    Mute Limón Madrugada
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    May 27th 2019, 10:41 PM

    @Dave O Keeffe: just not true.

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    Mute Kieran Fogarty
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    May 27th 2019, 10:57 PM

    @Claire Con: in fairness he said ungrateful fans

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    Mute Bryn Capstan
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    May 28th 2019, 1:42 AM

    @Vinny O’Shaughnessy: cheap shot. Jealousy no doubt. What’s your club won this decade so far???

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    Mute Claire Con
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    May 28th 2019, 5:24 PM

    @Dave O Keeffe: and like I said, unfortunately fans like that exist everywhere. In fairness it isn’t as regular of an occurrence like in Italy (thank God) but unfortunately Spanish fans tend to be aggressive.

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    Mute Claire Con
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    May 28th 2019, 5:25 PM

    @Kieran Fogarty: in fairness he called the club despicable. Not the most accurate comment when you compare the club to others.

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    Mute A Person
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    May 28th 2019, 6:55 PM

    @Claire Con: Mbappe

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    Mute Dave O Keeffe
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    May 29th 2019, 1:19 AM

    @Limón Madrugada: several sources, including Dembele himself.

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    Mute Dave O Keeffe
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    May 29th 2019, 2:27 AM

    @Claire Con: except you specifically singled out serie A fans for racism as a defense of Madrid fans. In no way am I saying it’s just Madrid. It’s pretty prevalent in Spain.

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    Mute Claire Con
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    May 29th 2019, 7:18 PM

    @Dave O Keeffe: I wasn’t necessarily singling our anyone. I simply mean that this isn’t an irregular occurrence in serie A games. Literally something happens every game.

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