London: Fabrice Muamba hopes to play soccer again after his remarkable recovery from an unexplained cardiac arrest that struck him down on the pitch last month despite feeling fitter than ever, the 24-year-has said.
The Bolton Wanderers midfielder shocked the soccer world went he collapsed with no one around him in an English FA Cup quarter-final at Tottenham Hotspur.
"It would be great to play football again and I hope that it will happen," he told Britain`s Sun on Sunday newspaper in his first interview since his heart stopped working on its own for 78 minutes. "But it is even greater just to live life and love my family. I`m a lucky man."
On Monday, two days after Italian footballer Piermario Morosini died after a similar collapse, Muamba left hospital just a month after the incident but doctors are puzzled by his cardiac arrest.
"I`ve had lots of tests but it`s still not clear exactly what caused my collapse and perhaps we`ll never know," added the England Under-21 player, who now has a "zapper" in his chest which could shock his heart back to normal if it reoccurs.
"It may never happen again and now I have to take each day as it comes and appreciate every single moment of the life God has given me as a wonderful gift."
Muamba had trained well all week before his collapse but does remember something was not right in the minutes prior to the incident.
"I don`t even get colds very often, I`ve never had any problems with my heart. I remember feeling particularly fit and was really looking forward to the match," he said.
"I ran up field to try to get on the end of a cross from Martin Petrov on our left wing and as I ran back into midfield I felt very slightly dizzy.
"It wasn`t normal dizziness - it was a kind of surreal feeling like I was running along inside someone else`s body. It`s hard to explain. Then I made another burst forward and noticed it again.... but then my vision started to go.
"I had no pain whatsoever."
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.