Alex McLeish has broken his silence on the health rumours which dogged his time in charge of Scotland.
The 61-year-old's 14-month reign was brought to an end last April despite leading the national team to a Euro 2020 play-off against Israel.
And, in an exclusive interview with Sportsmail, McLeish admits he only learned of the whispers over his welfare in a phonecall from his son Jon after his final game against San Marino.
Addressing reports of a 'deeply troubling incident' before the Euro 2020 qualifier against the minnows for the first time, the former Rangers boss admits he was 'embarrassed' by a mental lapse during his pre-match team talk.
Shooting down the concerns that he might be the latest former player to succumb to an early onset neurological condition, however, the Aberdeen legend insists he has received a clean bill of health.
'I'm aware of how the internet works,' he said. 'I'm not a dinosaur in that respect.
'I have kids and grandkids that are all over it. But I was never one for logging on and Googling my own name to see what the reaction was to me.
'I knew I would be getting dog's abuse – so why go looking for it?
'That's why I was unaware of connotations and rumours of me being ill and so on.
'I didn't know people were saying stuff about my health on the internet. But then, a couple of days after the qualifier in San Marino, my son Jon phoned me and asked, 'Has something happened over there?'.
Admitting he still cringes over forgetting his words during a team talk designed to lift his players after the humiliating defeat in Kazakhstan affected, McLeish added: 'I just had a blank with a word I needed to say in a speech, I walked out the room and came back in and that probably didn't look good.
'I was embarrassed at losing my thread. I couldn't believe I could do that.
'The irony is that when the reports of the incident in San Marino emerged, I was in the process of doing my annual medical tests with the League Managers' Association.
'They were more concerned with the heart and fitness tests and stuff. But I have now had absolutely everything checked.
'I was an ongoing process and I still had things to do at the time, but I have now done every test and I am absolutely fine.'
A landmark study conducted by the University of Glasgow showed that professional footballers are three and a half times more likely to suffer from dementia and other neurological diseases than the public at large.
And McLeish admitted he was concerned for his own health.
'Listen, I must have headed a ball a few million times in my playing career,' he said. 'That's why we thought, "Let's get it checked".
'We have seen examples of former players like me and the English FA have obviously been under fire for the Jeff Astle situation.
'We've seen it with our own legends like Billy McNeill, as well. But you don't know if it's just necessarily heading a ball that does it.
'And when you get to the age I am, you do have moments when you think, "Wait a minute I've forgotten his name".
'I now know that's just because I know too many people - and at this particular stage of life, I can't remember everyone. But I had all the necessary tests and everything is clear.'
SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell insists the decision to change Scotland manager was made purely for football reasons. Asked if the speculation over his welfare might have influenced the decision, McLeish shrugs.
'I'm sure the SFA would have been aware of the rumours,' he said. 'The Kazakhstan game was a particularly sore one and I cared.
'Did I expect to lose my job after that? I thought there was a chance because it had been a topsy-turvy year and a bit.
'But when you look at the competitive games, I had a 66-per-cent win rate. It's not a horrendous record.
'Listen, I don't want the sympathy card. If the introduction of new players, the help of my supportive staff and the decision to hire Stevie Clarke leads to Scotland reaching the Euro 2020 finals, no one will be more delighted than me.'