Danny Rose has revealed a club seeking to sign him last summer had requested a meeting to check he was “not crazy” in the wake of the Tottenham full-back speaking out about his battles with depression.
The England defender, who has been included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for next month’s Nations League, had apparently been sounded out by a suitor – there is no indication Spurs had given permission for an approach, and the player does not reveal the identity of the club – over a potential move. In the build-up to the World Cup Rose had gone public on his struggles with mental health, suggesting his depression had been triggered by the treatment of a knee injury coupled with family tragedy.
“There’s still a long way to go in football because in the summer I was speaking to another club and they said: ‘The club would like to meet you, just to check that you’re not crazy,’ because of what I’d said and what I’d been through,” Rose said. “I was embarrassed, as whatever I’ve been through, I like to think it doesn’t affect me doing my job. I still know I’ll always give 100%.
“In the end they didn’t put a bid in but to think that people assume I might be crazy is embarrassing and I’m still angry about it. If that opportunity came around again I’d definitely say no now.”
The 28-year-old was speaking in conversation with the Duke of Cambridge in a BBC documentary, A Royal Team Talk: Tackling Mental Health, to be broadcast on Sunday. The film sets out to tackle the importance of talking about men’s mental health, with suicide still the biggest killer of men under the age of 45.
Rose, a key member of the Tottenham team who have reached the Champions League final, had suggested his depression deepened as he contended with the triple trauma of his uncle killing himself, his mum, Angela, being racially abused and an assailant shooting at his brother inside the family home.
In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international suicide helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org
