Chris Mepham: Wales and Bournemouth defender nearly quit after Chelsea exit aged 16
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Chris Mepham had established himself as a Wales regular before injury struck in January 2020
Wales and Bournemouth defender Chris Mepham says he nearly quit football in 2012 when he found himself "in a dark place" as a teenager.
The 22-year-old has established himself at both international level, winning 10 caps so far, and in the Premier League.
But he nearly became a gardener after being released by Chelsea at 16.
"I was in quite a dark place really in terms of where I was at with football, I got released by Chelsea after being there for six years," he told 5 Live.
After failed trials with Queen's Park Rangers and Watford, and with the news of serious illness within the family, Mepham revealed he was so disheartened he nearly turned his back on football.
"I sort of came away from that and had a real hard look at myself and thought is football going to be the career for me and is it time to call it a day, maybe I'm not good enough and maybe I should look elsewhere?" he said, speaking in Mental Health Awareness Week.
"It came at a time when my uncle got diagnosed with motor neurone disease and he didn't have long to live and he had his own gardening business.
"So when he was getting quite bad and not able to do physical activity, me and my dad helped in the summer and there was a real option there and it was definitely something that I considered."
But with his playing career in the balance Mepham was offered a trial by Brentford, impressing enough to earn a contract, so instead of working amongst the bees he found himself working for The Bees.
"Brentford are the ones that put me in a position where they trusted me when no other team would and gave me an opportunity to play first-team football," said Mepham, who is an ambassador for charity Sporting Minds UK., external
"I feel like you can never have enough support as a footballer, especially as a young one like me where there's a lot sort of pressure and you're quite new to the team and to the environment."
Mepham began in the youth team and the centre-back progressed through the ranks to make the first team in the 2017-18 season.
Chris Mepham admits his £12m move from Brentford to Premier League Bournemouth brought its own pressures
He had also been progressing through the Wales youth ranks and in March 2018 made his senior debut in the China Cup, coming off the bench in a 6-0 win against the hosts.
Mepham's growing stature saw him sign for Bournemouth in January 2019 for £12m, but while moving to a Premier League club was a huge achievement it was still a difficult adjustment for the then 21-year-old.
"When you're sort of on the verge of joining a Premier League team for the fee I went for, you know that process involves moving house and moving away from the family, friends," he admitted.
"Going into a new area on my own is quite a lot to take on and that's just away from football.
"Suddenly you've got the pressure of being a Premier League footballer and playing the best players in the world every week is quite a big change.
"Luckily I had a really good support network with my family, my friends [to] make the process easier, but it is quite a lot to deal with in quite a short period of time."
Another test of his character followed last January when Mepham suffered a serious knee injury that was to sideline him for three months.
"I'd say probably it was one of the hardest things I've had to deal with, I know some people have it a lot worse and are kept out for a lot longer by injuries, but it is a lonely place," he said.
"You go in every day and all the lads get ready for training and you're just... spending time on your own in the physio room and it's difficult.
"Luckily I'm in a position now where I've recovered from my injury so I'm definitely looking forward to going back."
Premier League players will be allowed to train in small groups from Tuesday as coronavirus restrictions ease and Mepham says clubs must still balance both the physical and mental sides of player welfare.
"A lot of people will probably need to go back into that environment, to get back training, get back to what us footballers are used to, so I think from that aspect for a lot of players it will probably do the world of good," he added.
"But then at the same time there's other people and there's lads in our team who have expressed real concern about going back, so I think there's a bit of a divide and I think it can be quite a fine line between it's right to do so and when it's not right to do so."
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