Fabrice Muamba has confirmed that he will retire from the game after medical advice.

The Bolton midfielder collapsed on the White Hart Lane pitch earlier in the year in an FA Cup clash with Tottenham, and was rushed to hospital after a cardiac arrest.

The former England under-21 star's heart stopped for 78 minutes, with Muamba lucky to still be alive.

However, despite recovering and leaving hospital, Muamba will never be able to play the game he loves again.

“As part of my ongoing recovery, last week I travelled to Belgium to seek further medical advice from a leading cardiologist. But the news I received was obviously not what I had hoped it would be, and it means I am now announcing my retirement," The Telegraph confirm the Trotters man as saying.

“Football has been my life since I was a teenage boy and it has given me so many opportunities. Since ­suffering my heart attack and being discharged from hospital, I have remained utterly positive in the belief I could one day resume my playing career and play for Bolton Wanderers once again.

“But while the news is devastating, I have much to be thankful for. I thank God that I am alive and I pay tribute once again to the members of the medical team, who never gave up on me," he concluded.

By Gareth McKnight

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