A FOOTBALL club boss has written a heartwarming letter to a superfan who suffers from depression and anxiety.

Life-long Barnsley FC supporter Chris Ryder’s mental health issues were first triggered following the death of his older brother Simon in 2010, who passed away from a heart attack.

The 30-year-old’s depression worsened when his dad, William, 64, died from cancer in 2013.

Chris’ dad was an avid Barnsley supporter who took Chris to his first ever match in September 1996 and he has been a fan ever since.

In the letter, the club’s chief executive officer Gauthier Ganaye said it was the club’s turn to ‘return the favour’ for years of loyalty.

The Frenchman told him, ‘my office door is always open’ and cited the MIND charity, which promotes mental health awareness and are an English Football League partner this season.

Mr Ganaye also quipped how the club had got a handsome ‘sell-on’ fee following former centre back’s Alfie Mawson’s reported £20million signing to Fulham.

Chris has told of how more teams should follow suit to help break the ‘mental health taboo’ that still exists in football.

He recently took to Twitter to share the demons he has fought since the loss of two prominent figures in his life, which was picked up on by Barnsley FC.

Chris said: ‘I didn’t think anything [about the letter] until I opened it and saw the club badge.

"I thought 'uh oh, what have I done'.

"I’m known to be cheeky to the admin team on Twitter, in funny way.

"Other than the tweets above and a councillor a few years ago I don’t really open up, I’m a rather reserved person.

"I usually keep things bottled up so that I don’t get a reaction, I always thought it would make me come across as weak.

"I now know the EFL [English Football League] are working with MIND but until I saw it on the letter I wasn’t aware.

"I think just spreading more on social media, even the odd poster in the toilets will reach more people than they’re aware."

He added: "The letter itself was a big shock and also gave me the details for MIND which I never thought to look into.

"After sharing the letter, the support I’ve had from friends, strangers and even professional football players is unreal.

"The amount of love for Barnsley from other clubs fans in unbelievable.

"I don’t think anyone has really seen anything like this before."

Mr Ganaye took over as the chief executive of Barnsley last summer and was tasked with handling the take over by a consortium led by Chinese businessman Chien Lee and American Paul Conway.

If you or someone you know is having a difficult time, please don’t suffer alone. Visit the Heads Together site for more useful information.