Knockaert opens up on depression battle

The Frenchman was vital in helping the 'Seagulls' secure Premier League football for the first time in their history as he scored 15 goals and laid on a further nine over the course of the 2016/17 Championship season, but those achievements were soured by the news that his father had lost his battle with stomach cancer midway through the campaign.

Things took a further turn for the worse before Brighton got their maiden Premier League season underway as Knockaert and his wife split up, before she returned to France along with their son.

"There was a moment when I began crying and I just couldn't stop," Knockaert told 'The Guardian'.

In the end, Knockeart sought out club captain Bruno, who ensured that the matter was passed on to manager Chris Hughton as the winger was sent for therapy.

"I had to tell Bruno that I needed help, that nothing was going right in my life," he continued.

"That I didn't know where it was all going to end if I didn't talk about it. I felt like I was on the edge, staring into the abyss. I was afraid of what might happen.''

"I think it saved me. It wasn't immediate. It took time," he said of the therapy.

"But after three or four months I started to feel better and even though you must never get carried away I can honestly say that right now I feel back to my normal self. Happy.

"And I can see how it all came about - losing my Dad, the pending divorce, not seeing my little boy every day. It was impossible for me to concentrate on football. Impossible.

"I had dreamed of playing Premier League football but I was in no state to give the best of myself. It was depressing.

"People were criticising my performances, but they couldn't know why I was struggling to perform."

When Steve Sidwell scored the winner against Bristol City, Brighton's players held up a shirt bearing Knockaert's name as a show of support following the passing of his father, but it was the squad's attendance at the funeral that really touched the 27-year-old's heart.

"What happened on the day of the funeral is something I will never forget," he added.

"And it shows what an amazing club Brighton is and what great people I have had around me. I knew Bruno and the coach were coming over because Bruno, who's been a great friend to me, called to ask for the address. I was really touched that the coach and the captain were going to be there to represent Brighton."