Norwich City forward Emiliano Marcondes has given his backing to the Championship club’s ongoing mental health campaign and believes players should be ready to “open up” when things are tough on and off the pitch.
The Canaries gave Marcondes a chance to relaunch his career after he was released by Bournemouth in the summer, following a loan spell in Scotland with Hibernian, and he has scored three goals in 20 appearances so far.
He was a guest speaker at a Mental Health Awareness evening at Carrow Road on Thursday and is firmly behind initiatives to raise awareness of the issue.
“It’s something that has always been very close to me. I did a campaign with Brentford when I was there about mental health and it’s something that touched my heart and I want to do more with,” he told BBC Radio Norfolk.
Marcondes was a free agent for the first time in his career following his release by the Cherries, but eventually signed a one-year contract with an option of a further 12 months with Norwich.
“Something I learnt over the summer was to be very open about it, try to speak to as many people and friends about it, because it was a period for me to digest things,” the 29-year-old Dane said.
“Also because of my career, and the next step in my life, it was very clear for me to go through it and (that) I couldn’t hide, I wouldn’t hide.”
Marcondes admitted that in the past he had been “maybe a bit more closed” in terms of his feelings but now felt “empowered” by having the chance to talk about the issue.
Norwich’s campaign attracted widespread attention when the club produced a video to mark World Mental Health Day in the autumn of 2023.
Thursday’s event was attended by representatives from 27 mental health support groups from around the area.
Marcondes said: “I followed Norwich and have seen what Norwich have done in the past when I was at the other clubs, especially the video with the two fans that has gone viral, it’s quite a special video.
“Now I’m here I can also feel it from the club and the community and the city, everyone is standing together to make things better.”
Players are often on the receiving end of abuse and criticism on social media and this is another area, Marcondes feels, in which players need to be aware of the effect it is having upon them.
He said: “It’s everywhere. I have social media but I almost block everything out. I don’t read comments, I have a filter on and also people that help me with my social media, to block the negative messages.
“To be fair, I don’t feel that I personally am getting a lot of negative stuff. I’m not focused on it. When I was young I was a bit more aware of it and it hurt me a bit more.”
Norwich are 12th in the Championship, six points adrift of the play-off places, having lost their past two games against Sheffield United and Leeds United and failed to produce an on-target goal attempt in either.
“Football is very much about highs and lows. The challenge for us is about staying level-headed and even during those highs and lows,” said Matt Miller, the club’s senior performance psychologist.
“My role is about supporting players, both from a wellbeing standpoint, but also from a performance standpoint.
“(It’s) behind the scenes, to a certain degree, I’m certainly not front and centre but providing players with support as and when they might need it.
“It’s about helping them understand what their best looks like from a behaviour standpoint, and if they can develop awareness of that, hopefully they can connect with that and demonstrate those behaviours on a consistent basis.”
He added: “The department has grown from one member of staff to four. I’m very fortunate to work at a football club that really believes that psychology is really important to helping our players and staff perform at their best.”
It is an invaluable resource for the playing squad as they look to find ways to improve and relaunch their push for the end-of-season play-offs.
“I don’t really think too much about not having a shot on target (in the past two games). It’s about building the right attacks and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Marcondes added.
“It’s been (because of) a lack of timing and quality in the final moments, and a bit more composure, that’s something I’ve been a little frustrated about as an attacking player. It has been something that I also look into when I watch the games back, see where I can be better and improve the team.”
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