“I received a lot of messages and I really appreciate it – I also got a lot of messages from people who are going through the same thing,” the 26-year-old told Brighton’s website.

“It’s nice for me to be able to help them and I think in life everyone can help one another, that’s what I was trying to do.”

Knockaert was divorced from his wife last summer, less than a year after his dad Patrick died in November 2016.

He added: “A lot of people were probably surprised because nobody knew about it, but it felt like the right time for me to tell people.

“The most important thing was to help other people who are going through a similar situation, that’s why I did it.”

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