Former Aberdeen midfielder Chris Forrester admits he was struggling on and off the pitch during his time at Pittodrie.
Forrester was a £150,000 signing by then boss Derek McInnes from Peterborough United in summer 2018.
However he made just eight appearances.
Aberdeen terminated Forrester’s contract at the player’s request in January 2019 to allow him to return home to be with family.
Forrester was trying to come to terms with a family bereavement at the time.
The midfielder went on to return to St Patrick’s Athletic in Ireland and has thanked the club for sticking by him during tough times.
Forrester, 30, has been in superb form for St Pat’s this season and is set to make his 300th appearance for the club, spread over two periods, when facing Shamrock Rovers.
The midfielder told the Irish Mirror: “When I came back from Aberdeen, I wasn’t playing well and the fans stuck with me for probably a year-and-a-half of me playing absolutely terrible football.
“It’s not through not wanting to play good football, just not being in a mental state – but they stuck by me.
“I was in a really bad mental state, I just couldn’t get a good game out of me and you think ‘this is just going to be the way it is forever’.
“But I’ve learned as I’ve got older, football is like that, you’re going to have some bad days and you’re going to have some good days.
“It’s just about trying to stay at a consistent level.
“Not being too high and not being too low and trying to stay at that level as long as you can.
“It took a long time for me to get out of that state.
“You hear a few rumbles (in the crowd) which is fine but the fans stuck with me through hard times.
“So when I play well I feel that’s my way of saying ‘I’m appreciative of what you do for me’ and this is how I try to repay the club and fans.”
‘It’s tough when you’re in a bad mental state’
Forrester made his competitive debut for Aberdeen when featuring as a substitute in the 3-1 (extra-time) Europa League qualifier loss at Burnley on August 2, 2018.
His first Premiership appearance was in a 1-1 draw with Rangers at Pittodrie three days after his debut at Burnley.
He scored the winning penalty in the Betfred Cup quarter-final shoot-out win against Hibs.
Forrester started just once for Aberdeen with his final appearance off the bench in a 5-1 defeat of Dundee on December 18, 2018.
He said: “You need people around you who will build you up and even tell you a few lies just to keep you pushing on.
“It’s tough when you’re in a bad mental state.
“It’s hard to explain.
“When you come out of it, it’s like ‘Jesus, it wasn’t all that bad’. I probably could have done this or done that.
“That’s hindsight, I suppose.
“It’s hard sitting there (before a game) knowing you’re not going to have a good game, but you still have to go out and try to perform your best.
“But by doing that you have to win yourself back over.
“It’s the only way to do it. You have to get back on the saddle and just go again. Just persevere, I suppose.”
Conversation