Former Everton backroom staff member Dan Donachie has described his strong feelings following his departure from the club.
The ex-Everton director of medical services left Finch Farm in November 2021 as then-manager Rafael Benitez continued to make sweeping changes to the club's structure.
The highly respected physiotherapist is the son of former Blues assistant-manager Willie Donachie and first joined the club back in 2001 as head of manual therapy.
And, writing on his LinkedIn account on Friday morning, he has discussed how much he misses the environment at Everton after talking about a story separate from his own.
Donachie wrote: "I read a story this morning about a footballer who had been diagnosed with cancer. He had turned up to the training ground to find that his team-mates had surprised him…
"Coming into the lockers he walked in to see them all sat there waiting. Every one of them had shaved their head in his honour. He broke down in tears and the moment really got to me too.
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"I felt a strong wave of emotion come over me, and a heavy feeling in my heart. But it was from more than seeing this compassionate gesture the emotion was also coming from somewhere else.
"As I sat there, present with the emotion I realised the feelings were of grief and loss. After three months away from the game I felt a sudden urge to reach out to the players I had left behind.
"The grief and loss were for my own footballing family. I missed them. The feeling in my heart was letting me know that I missed the way I had felt held and cared for by the group.
"It's a cliché but you spend more time with the players than you do with your own family. The bonds in football are that strong. I've spent a lifetime in football but you see, when you do something for so long, you can begin to take things for granted.
"Working in sport has many challenges but you become part of a system that feels like a home. I felt supported and loved by so many people at the club.
"The important lesson is that you should allow yourself to feel emotions fully and not respond too quickly. They may arise immediately or three months down the line but they need to be processed in presence."
Donachie has not joined another club after his departure from Everton.
And he believes that has left him in something of a 'dilemma' right now, as he still misses the feeling of being involved in elite sport.
However, he has found a rewarding experience working with individuals over recent months.
"Fight or flight is a strong reaction and it might feel instinctive to run back into a familiar situation and find a new footballing family and that is my dilemma now," he added.
"I have been working with some incredible individuals recently and am finding deep purpose in helping them reach their potential. It feels intensely rich and rewarding and I still feel the pull.
"The challenges at the highest levels of business might be different but I still feel that sense of purpose and meaning of being able to help my clients create unique and meaningful lives.
"I will always miss the feeling of being in one huge family in elite sport and I am lucky to have made so many lifelong friends."
