ENGLAND midfielder Declan Rice shared some kind words with his Slovenian counterpart Josip Ilicic.
The Maribor striker has spoken about his past battles with depression, which almost led to him retiring in 2022.
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He revealed that Rice, 25, reached out before yesterday’s game in an incredible act of sportsmanship.
Ilicic, 36, told Sky Italy: “My story is inspiring. I’m glad to hear that, honestly.
“Just today, walking onto the field, an England player praised me.
“He told me that he respects me a lot. It was nice to hear that. My story is well known around the world.
“The player who said that? He’s an Arsenal midfielder, I’m sure you know him, Declan Rice.”
Former Atalanta star Ilicic was hospitalized with a lymph node infection in 2018.
He said: “I realized that football is not everything in life.
“Sometimes people get angry over nothing, but that illness changed me.
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“I didn’t even want to watch the games. My family, my teammates and the coach supported me, and once I recovered, it was a matter of finding match fitness.”
Ilicic was also hit by the death of Fiorentina teammate Davide Astori and was sidelined for a year in 2022 after struggling during the coronavirus pandemic.
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He added: “I was afraid to sleep.
“I thought I would never wake up in the morning and see my family again.
“It was difficult to recover. You start from scratch and have to get used to moving and running again, as if I were a child.”
You are not alone
EVERY 90 minutes in the UK a life is lost to suicide
It does not discriminate, affecting the lives of people in all corners of society – from the homeless and unemployed to builders and doctors, reality TV stars and football players.
It is the biggest cause of death for people under 35, deadlier than cancer and car accidents.
And men are three times more likely to take their own lives than women.
Yet it is rarely spoken of, a taboo that threatens to continue its deadly rampage unless we all stop and pay attention, now.
That’s why The Sun launched the You’re Not Alone campaign.
The aim is that by sharing practical advice, raising awareness and breaking down the barriers people face when talking about their mental health, we can all do our part to help save lives.
Let’s all promise to ask for help when we need it and listen to others… You are not alone.
If you, or someone you know, needs help dealing with mental health issues, the following organizations will provide support:
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