Brentford captain Christian Nørgaard has said he feared becoming addicted to sleeping pills after taking the medication to prepare for away games.
The 31-year-old, who joined Brentford in 2019, said the problem began at his former club Brondby.
“I really clearly remember when it [first] happened,” Norgaard told the BBC.
“It was before quite an important cup game in Denmark and the mind started going. I had a bad night’s sleep and I brought those thoughts to the game and I was like, ‘What if I don’t play well now because I’ve slept bad?’.
“That became my thinking pattern before the next game, ‘I need to sleep before the game otherwise I’ll be a disaster in the game’. So that’s why you have to break those patterns up.”
Working with Brentford “sleep coach” Anna West has helped Norgaard but he said the problem was something that had gone under the radar.
Former Tottenham Hotspur and Everton player Aaron Lennon revealed in an interview in 2023 that he had spent six months in rehab for sleeping pill addiction and mental health issues.
Norgaard said listening to Lennon’s account of his addiction had made him realise how close he was to becoming addicted.
“It was tough to watch but it was also touching and it was quite emotional for someone like me who struggled with it and could have maybe ended up being addicted to these sleeping tablets,” he said.
“I remember sending a text to our sleeping coach Anna to say thank you for the things we’ve been working on because this is a clear picture of how bad it can go.
“It’s a topic that has maybe been going a bit under the radar. I think now it’s getting emphasised, not only in football but in general, how important it is.”
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