Luton Town's Tom Lockyer becomes dad after cardiac arrest

Tom Lockyer collapsed on the pitch after having a cardiac arrest

A footballer who suffered a cardiac arrest during a match has revealed he has become a father for the first time.

Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer, 29, collapsed during a Premier League match against Bournemouth in December.

He told Gary Lineker's podcast The Rest is Football the arrival of his daughter had "changed my world".

The defender said he had thought "football was the most important thing in the world" but the birth had given him a new perspective.

"This little girl came along and changes everything for me," he said.

The Wales international has previously told how he was "technically dead" for nearly three minutes and was resuscitated by medics.

He told presenters Lineker, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards: "The first thought I had when I came round was 'My missus is in the stand and she's seven months' pregnant.'

"But she seemed to have handled it really well and was amazing throughout the birth. I can't speak highly enough of her."

The player had previously collapsed in May during the Championship play-off final at Wembley against Coventry.

He was "given the all-clear" to continue his career after suffering from an atrial fibrillation, a condition the NHS describes as causing "an irregular and often abnormally fast heart rate".

Lockyer, who has not played since his cardiac arrest, said he was hoping to visit the club more often.

"Obviously the baby's come along, I don't have the energy at the minute, but when things settle down a little bit hopefully I can try and get in a little bit more," he said.