A miraculous recovery is what Fabrice Muamba's doctor called his consciousness regained teo hours after he was resuscitated. According to the Bolton Wanderers club doctor Jonathan Tobin, Fabrice Muamba was "in effect dead" for 78 minutes following his on-field collapse during the Saturday match against Tottenham Hotspur.

Doctors say it is too early to predict whether he will play football again.

But Dr Tobin said he is amazed by the 23-year-old's recovery so far.

In an emotional interview, Dr Tobin said: It was 48 minutes when he collapsed to reaching hospital and a further 30 minutes after that. He was, in effect, dead at that time. He added: We were fearing the worst and didn't think we would get the recovery we had. It's incredible.

Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest in Wanderers' FA Cup tie against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane on Saturday.