Former Manchester United star Jesse Lingard opens up on alcohol use, depression and poor form

Former Manchester United star Jesse Lingard has opened up on his struggles with depression and told of how he turned to alcohol when his performances on the pitch dropped.

The 30-year-old spoke openly to the Diary of a CEO podcast with Stephen Bartlett.

Born in Warrington in 1992, Lingard was mostly brought up by his Grandfather, as his mother struggled with depression.

Asked by host Stephen Bartlett, the footballer admitted he believed that he himself had been the root cause of his mother's depression.

He said: "She'd be in bed all day. I'd go in and ask for money for ice cream and she'd still be in bed."

"She could drop me off at school at 8 o'clock and sleep until 3 o'clock when she picks me up. That's how bad it was. We were really going through it."

It was a situation that overshadowed much of his life. His mother Kirsty was admitted to hospital for treatment in 2019, leaving Lingard to care for his younger siblings.

The added pressures in his personal life began to affect him on the pitch, with some Manchester United supporters turning on him after a run of poor performances.

"I was drinking before bed, having night caps. I look back now and think, what am I doing that for? What I needed was something to try and take the pain away and put me ease, and try and forgot what was going on. But it just makes in ten times worse."

The midfielder joined Nottingham Forest after 22 years at United last summer.

The move came after a public falling-out with interim United manager Ralf Rangnick, who publicly claimed that Lingard had asked for time off, after a proposed loan to Newcastle fell through. It was a claim that Lingard denied

"I went on twitter straight away, no I didn't ask for two days off. They asked me if I wanted the days off."

Asked if he had lost respect for United over time, Lingard said: "Probably, yeah. (There was) no balance, no structure, people doing what they want. It was like a free for all.

"They are so behind with everything. You see (Manchester) City's facilities, Tottenham's facilities. People are miles ahead. Even on the social side of things. I went to them in 2017 about YouTube and said let's do content.

"I just want them to get up to date on the new things that are happening. You've got to stay relevant. Catch up a bit.

"You see what City are doing, fresh training ground, best facilities, no one talking back in the press about the team."