Tom Lockyer wants Luton return but has ‘made peace’ with retirement possibility after cardiac arrest

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Tom Lockyer said he would “love” to return to playing professional football, but admitted it might not be possible.

The 29-year-old collapsed in the 59th minute of Luton’s abandoned Premier League match against Bournemouth on 16 December and had to be resuscitated by medics.

Lockyer was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator after spending five days in hospital, and said in February that he “literally died”.

“I’ve made no secret saying I would love to return to football, but ultimately it would have to come down to someone who’s a cardiologist or a specialist who has done full research into what has gone on and if it could happen again, because we’ve got a little girl now and she takes priority,” Lockyer told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.

“I would love to play football again, of course I would, it’s my life but if it’s the case that I can’t, then I’m at peace with that as well.

“I played for my country, I’ve played in every league and scored in every league from non-league to the Premier League so it’s not the end of the world.

“At the end of the day, I’ve got my health and that’s the most important thing”.

Tom Lockyer reveals implanted device (BBC Sport)

The collapse in December was Lockyer’s second. The Welshman also suffered a collapse during the Hatter’s Championship play-off win against Coventry in May 2023.

Lockyer has started looking at a future beyond the pitch, but he was forced to admit that might not be possible for him,

“When it first happened, the thing that was keeping me going was that I was going to be the one to come back and score the winner to keep Luton in the Premier League. That was my goal and pretty quickly that got squished by the physios and the doctor, they said ‘are you silly?’,” Lockyer added.

“I’m taking my time of things, it could take a lot longer than we thought, but we can’t rush these things and if I’m going to come back, it has to be right.”

Lockyer explained he has been working towards his coaching badges and working with British Heart Foundation to try and get hundreds of thousands to learn CPR.



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