Bournemouth had an added-time penalty award overturned by VAR as disjointed Manchester United escaped Vitality Stadium with a scarcely-deserved 2-2 draw thanks to Bruno Fernandes’ brace.

Referee Tony Harrington pointed to the spot five minutes beyond the 90 when Ryan Christie went down under a challenge from Willy Kambwala before changing his decision to a free-kick on review.

Erik ten Hag’s men were tormented for much of an uninspiring performance in Dorset and twice trailed in the first half following goals from Cherries pair Dominic Solanke and Justin Kluivert.

Fernandes volleyed home his first equaliser against the run of play before denying the impressive hosts a maiden league double over the 20-time English champions by converting a 65th-minute penalty after Adam Smith inexplicably handled.

United’s Portuguese captain also rattled the crossbar with a stunning strike from distance at 2-1 down in stoppage time at the end of an exhilarating opening period.

Yet outstanding Bournemouth, who hit the woodwork through Milos Kerkez and wasted numerous other chances, should have have been out of sight by then.

United move on to a Wembley FA Cup semi-final against Coventry sitting seventh in the table and with European qualification for next term still far from assured following another disappointing display of an unconvincing season, which extended their winless run to four top-flight games.

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag says he will miss the support of departed football director John Murtough and has emphasised the importance of replacing him.

United on Tuesday announced Murtough was stepping down from the post, having spent almost 11 years at the club in a variety of roles.

The Red Devils, with Ineos now in control of football operations after Sir Jim Ratcliffe became minority owner in February, are looking to bring in Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth and Southampton director of football Jason Wilcox.

Asked about Murtough leaving at a press conference ahead of Saturday’s trip to Bournemouth, Ten Hag said: “You mention the new season – it’s very important, the new ownership is working on this and we have to replace this function to go into the new season.

“For the moment, of course I miss his support, but he moved on, there has been choices made. We work very good together, so I say thank you to John and I wish him all the best for the future.

“Also I work with the new ownership very good and closely together and that will not change. It doesn’t have an impact on the way I can work here.

“Conditions were perfect and are still perfect, so I’m happy with that, but we want to set the right conditions to be successful.”

Manager Rob Edwards admitted to feeling “drained” after Luton scored a 90th-minute winner to come from behind to beat Bournemouth 2-1 at Kenilworth Road and take a huge step in the direction of Premier League survival.

Carlton Morris’s goal at the death – which was knocked in at the far post from substitute Cauley Woodrow’s cross – capped a strong second-half display from the home side and moved them level on points with 17th-place Nottingham Forest, who have a game in hand.

That footnote felt insignificant at the end as the stadium rocked with the euphoria of a first league win since Brighton were beaten here late in January.

“I’m quite drained,” said Edwards. “It’s been a tough period and it’s going to continue to be that way.

“It feels great. It’s hard to win a Premier League game, especially for us. We’ve got to find more in the remaining games.

“We put pressure on the lads after (losing against) Tottenham and Arsenal, but I thought we deserved it. We showed character and quality after going 1-0 down.”

Bournemouth had dominated the first half and struck the woodwork twice, first when James Tavernier’s free-kick crashed back off the post then again when Justin Kluivert hit the same upright with a low shot.

Luton were lacklustre and showed little in attack but inertia, but they emerged after the break with renewed life and went close through Morris, who drew a two fine saves from goalkeeper Neto.

Yet they fell behind almost immediately, Tavernier taking the ball off Kluivert in a central position and – after letting it run across his body – arrowing it into the corner.

At that point Luton might have caved, but instead they found renewed fight. Jordan Clark levelled after 73 minutes, finishing off a move he had started with a powerful run and lashing the ball home first time.

A point might have been fair, but Morris met Woodrow’s cross at the death to nick all three.

Edwards added: “It’s big. It’s hard at the moment with the number of key players missing. But that’s why I love those lads in there. They’ve given us everything, they’ve tried so hard.

“Jordan Clark, who’s got his first Premier League goal today, is like so many of our lads who have fought really hard over their footballing journey so far to get here. They don’t want to give this up.

“Just because we’ve won the game today, we’re not out of it, clearly. There’s a long, long way to go, but we’re still in the fight.”

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola, who had seen his team win four out of five in the league, reflected on a game that got away from them after the break.

“When you lose at the end, it’s hard,” he said. “It’s been the opposite in the last few games we’ve played.

“We were comfortable for the first 60 minutes, but in the second half it was difficult to find the spaces we’d been finding in the first half.”

Luton took a huge step towards Premier League survival as Carlton Morris’s 90th-minute strike earned them a 2-1 comeback win against Bournemouth at a jubilant Kenilworth Road.

Rob Edwards saw his side end their 10-match run without a league victory in dramatic fashion, Morris arriving at the far post to turn home Cauley Woodrow’s deep cross and stun Andoni Iraola in the away dugout.

Bournemouth had been excellent in the first half against a home side that looked creatively clueless, but it took until after the interval to make their breakthrough via James Tavernier’s low shot.

Luton rallied and Jordan Clark levelled to snatch what at that stage looked like being a critical point in their fight against the drop.

Then came Morris’s late intervention, knocking the ball past a stunned Neto in the visitors’ goal to spark joyous scenes.

After an even opening, the early chances fell to Bournemouth and Tavernier, first wrapping his left foot devilishly around a free-kick and sending it crashing against Thomas Kaminski’s post, then drilling wide from the edge of the box.

They hit the woodwork for a second time when Justin Kluivert’s low shot beat Kaminski but not the post.

The Dutch winger’s next effort – cutting in off the left after being played in down the channel by Antoine Semenyo before letting fly with a high, swinging drive – cleared the crossbar by a whisker as the visitors made plain their greater technical craft.

Bournemouth had won four of their last five in contrast to Luton’s 10-game winless streak and as the half progressed, they took near total control.

The advanced three of Kluivert, Semenyo and Tavernier were finding and exploiting space with ease, whilst Edwards’ side saw their own attacking focal point Ross Barkley squeezed out.

Tahith Chong summed up Luton’s creative blind spot when, late in a desperately-poor first half, he attempted a wild volley that clobbered against the roof of the stand behind Neto’s goal.

The situation called urgently for a response and what came next was a radically-improved Luton tempo. Three times in the first five minutes of the second period Neto was called upon to save, most impressively when Morris was denied with a fine fingertip reach.

Whatever cheer it had brought Edwards was wiped out in a flash.

Kluivert picked the ball up wide on right and, after dashing infield, laid it square to Tavernier. He calmly let the ball roll across his body before sending it flying like an arrow wide of Kaminski’s reach into the bottom corner.

Luton’s optimism might have been punctured but instead they pressed on. Morris skipped an effort along ground and against the post with Neto rooted to the spot, with Clark’s ferocious follow-up blocked, then Alfie Doughty got in down the left of the box and made the goalkeeper save.

Their equaliser with 17 minutes to go was deserved and Clark started and finished the move himself, running across the pitch from left to right, then feeding it to Reece Burke, who lost his duel.

The ball broke kindly for Clark who had gambled and continued his run and his reward was Luton’s leveller, lashed brilliantly into the corner.

A draw might have been fair result but Morris and Luton had other ideas at the death.

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola praised his side’s patience after a late goal from Justin Kluivert earned a hard-fought 1-0 win at home to Crystal Palace.

Dutchman Kluivert’s strike 11 minutes from time was enough to seal the Cherries’ third straight win and their fourth in five matches.

Iraola, whose side found it tough going to breach Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson and his stubborn defence, also praised substitute Antoine Semenyo for setting up the winning goal after coming on at half-time.

He said: “Tonight probably wasn’t the game we wanted to play because Palace are a team that want to keep position and want to defend on the ball without being too direct in attack.

“They were not creating chances but we were not comfortable but I think we dealt quite well with the game. We had a strong bench and scored another late goal, which is not a bad thing.

“We have almost two players in each position and that is good for the competition and also helped provide energy in the second half.

“Antoine had a headache before the game but at least he was able to give us a good 45 minutes and make the assist and he was a very important player for us.”

It took until nine minutes before half-time for Bournemouth to seriously test Henderson, who flung himself down to his left to turn Philip Billing’s long-range free-kick away from goal.

A minute later Henderson made an even better save to acrobatically tip Billing’s powerful header from an Adam Smith cross over the bar.

Palace thought they had taken the lead in first-half stoppage time when Eberechi Eze fired home at the far post via a deflection but celebrations were cut short after a VAR review deemed Jean-Philippe Mateta was just offside in the build-up to the goal.

Palace’s resistance was finally broken in the 79th minute when Semenyo got the better of David Ozoh down the right wing before cutting the ball back for fellow substitute Kluivert to rifle home from 12 yards.

The defeat extends Palace’s winless away run to 10 matches and manager Oliver Glasner said: “I’m not worried about the away form.

“I am really proud of the team; how we defended as a team and how we kept them out of our box. But if you don’t score, you can’t win.

“I think we had good opportunities but we did not finish them.

“In the end we have to blame ourselves that we have not maximised the situations we created and this is what we have to improve, to be more decisive and more direct in front of goal, then we can start to win games.”

Substitute Justin Kluivert bagged a late winner as Bournemouth beat shot-shy Crystal Palace 1-0 to claim a third straight win and fourth in five matches.

The game was played in torrential rain and swirling winds, which made it difficult for either side to get the ball down and play.

Palace deployed former Bournemouth midfielder Jefferson Lerma as an emergency central defender to deputise for the injured Chris Richards and the Colombian made a desperate last-ditch tackle in the 10th minute to deny Philip Billing a clean run on goal after neat interplay between the Dane and Dominic Solanke.

Jean-Phillipe Mateta then found himself in the right place at the right time to nod the ball over his own crossbar after Dango Ouattara had flicked a corner towards the Palace net.

The visitors’ first sight of goal came five minutes later when Mateta shot straight into the arms of Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto after Will Hughes had dispossessed Alex Scott on the edge of his own penalty area.

Billing guided a left-foot shot narrowly wide after linking up with Ouattara before an off-balance Jordan Ayew could only pick out Neto’s gloves after being teed up by the lively Eberechi Eze.

It took until nine minutes before half-time for Eagles goalkeeper Dean Henderson to be properly tested as he flung himself down to his left to turn away Billing’s long-range free-kick.

A minute later Henderson made an even better save to acrobatically tip Billing’s powerful header from Adam Smith’s cross over the bar.

The resulting corner found Lloyd Kelly unmarked at the far post but the defender could only head wide from close range.

Palace thought they had taken the lead in first-half stoppage time when Eze fired home at the far post via a deflection but their celebrations were cut short after a VAR review deemed Mateta was just offside in the build-up to the goal.

Bournemouth, watched from the stand by American owner Bill Foley, brought on Antoine Semenyo for Scott at half-time before introducing Milos Kerkez and Kluivert early in the second half.

Within seconds of his arrival left-back Kerkez forced a sprawling save from Henderson before Solanke, who was largely starved of service, lashed the rebound into the side-netting from a tight angle.

Palace’s stubborn resistance was finally broken in the 79th minute when Semenyo got the better of David Ozoh down the right wing before cutting the ball back for fellow substitute Kluivert to rifle home from 12 yards.

Semenyo could have doubled Bournemouth’s lead moments later but his angled drive from the corner of the six-yard box was well saved by Henderson with his legs.

A “frustrated” Sean Dyche was left to rue a late lapse after seeing Everton slump to a last-gasp 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth thanks to Seamus Coleman’s own goal.

The visitors looked set for a valuable point when Beto’s 87th-minute goal cancelled out Dominic Solanke’s opener but in the dying moments Adam’s Smith deep cross bounced up and hit Coleman on the chest before dropping agonisingly into the net.

Dyche said: “Obviously I’m frustrated and disappointed with the dying embers of the game.

“For such a simple moment we get confused and they get a goal out of nothing really.

“We find a goal and I’m pleased with that, because it’s an ugly goal and you can’t always score the perfect goal.

“We should go away with a point of course, but we can’t defend like that.”

Both sides were denied by the woodwork, with Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo striking the base of a post in the first half and Dwight McNeil hitting the near post as he attempted a cross in the second.

The home side took the lead in the 64th minute when Solanke got between Tarkowski and Ben Godfrey to head home Lloyd Kelly’s cross.

Everton hit back when goalkeeper Neto dropped McNeil’s cross right at the feet of Beto who rolled the ball home from close range, but Dyche’s delight soon turned to despair.

This is a crunch time both on and off the pitch for Everton, with majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri saying he remains confident the protracted takeover of the club by 777 Partners will be completed soon.

The club are also due to find out the verdict of a second charge of breaching the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules, with a further points deduction a possibility before the end of the season in addition to the six they have already lost.

Next up for the Toffees is a trip to Newcastle followed by a clash with relegation rivals Burnley at Goodison Park but, even though his side are just three points above the bottom three, Dyche’s belief is not wavering.

“The question marks over this club have been here for two-and-a-half, three years,” he said.

“I believe in the players and I believe in myself.”

The win moved 13th-placed Bournemouth on to 38 points but manager Andoni Iraola is confident they can climb higher.

“Obviously it’s a very good amount of points but we still have nine more chances. We still want to win. Now we are going to take the games one by one,” he said.

“For us it was a very important win. Everton always put you under pressure with the long ball and the set-pieces.

“I think we dealt with it quite well against them and it’s not easy to score against them.”

Seamus Coleman’s stoppage-time own goal condemned Everton to a bruising 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth as they equalled their worst Premier League run of 12 games without a win.

Beto’s 87th-minute equaliser to cancel out Dominic Solanke’s opener looked set to earn Sean Dyche’s side a valuable point, but Coleman’s late intervention left them empty-handed.

This is a crunch time for Everton both on and off the pitch. Their majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri said ahead of the game he remained confident the protracted takeover of the club by 777 Partners would be completed soon and herald a brighter future.

The club are also due to find out the verdict of a second charge of breaching the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules, with a further points deduction a possibility before the end of the season in addition to the six they have already lost.

The omens coming to Bournemouth were not positive for Dyche’s side. The Cherries had never lost at home to Everton in the Premier League and the visitors came into the match without a win in 2024.

Next up for the Toffees is a trip to Newcastle followed by a relegation clash against Burnley at Goodison Park.

On Saturday Bournemouth made the early running in the spring sunshine and Antoine Semenyo hit a fierce shot at Jordan Pickford before Lewis Cook blasted the rebound over.

Slowly Everton began to grow into the game and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, without a goal since October, saw an early effort blocked by Chris Mepham.

Everton were gradually becoming a little bolder and Calvert-Lewin had their best chance when the ball fell to him off James Tarkowski’s heel, but he could not generate the required power and Neto pushed the ball to safety.

With the half drawing to a close, Bournemouth re-exerted themselves and Semenyo struck the base of a post as he seized on a loose ball after Jarrad Branthwaite had got caught up with Tyler Adams.

The home side subsequently appealed unsuccessfully for a penalty, with Dyche and opposite number Andoni Iraola becoming tetchy in the dugouts.

The pace of the game increased after the break and Dwight McNeil struck the near post as he attempted a cross, with Bournemouth’s defenders relieved to see the loose ball go wide after it deflected off Mepham.

Then Bournemouth struck as Solanke got between Tarkowski and Ben Godfrey to head in Lloyd Kelly’s cross, taking his tally to 16 for the season.

Everton looked to have claimed an unlikely point when Neto dropped McNeil’s cross right at the feet of Beto, who rolled the ball home from close range to leave Dyche punching the air in the dugout.

But, in a final twist, Adam’s Smith deep cross bounced up and hit Coleman on the chest before dropping agonisingly into the net.

Wales boss Rob Page has backed Tom Lockyer’s calls for people to learn CPR after his squad acquired lifesaving skills three months before their team-mate collapsed.

Lockyer suffered a cardiac arrest during Luton’s Premier League game at Bournemouth in December and his heart stopped for two minutes and 40 seconds.

The 29-year-old was saved as medics rushed to perform CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) and provide early defibrillation.

Wales defender Lockyer has since supported the British Heart Foundation’s campaign for people to learn CPR skills, as well as raise funds for lifesaving research.

“The medical team came in and we did the class,” Page said of his squad undertaking a CPR and defibrillator training course in September that would take on special significance three months later.

“Tom is championing it at the minute, and rightly so.

“It just shows that there’s more to life than football.”

Lockyer returned to the scene of his on-pitch cardiac arrest on Wednesday for Luton’s re-arranged meeting with Bournemouth.

The 16-times capped central defender met medics who helped save his life and admitted that he “got a little bit emotional”, while describing them as “heroes”.

Lockyer has since been fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator and conceded it is “out of his hands” if he will ever play again.

But he will be part of Wales’ preparations next week as they bid to qualify for Euro 2024 and a third successive European Championship.

Wales host Finland in a play-off semi-final in Cardiff next Thursday, with the winners at home to Estonia or Poland five days later to decide a place in Germany this summer.

Page said: “I’ve had a good conversation with Locks and he’ll be a part of it. We don’t know what days or for how long yet.

“But he’s keen to come in and we’re keen to have him around the lads.

“I can only imagine how hard it was for Meps (Chris Mepham), Kieffer (Moore) and Brooksy (David Brooks) when they played that fixture and saw their mate on the floor like he was.

“I can only imagine how hard it would have been for them.

“They’ve had contact straight after and they’ve been in touch since, but it’ll be nice to have them all back in the group together.

“Forget football, just being together as good mates is powerful for them.”

Rob Edwards says his Luton players must quickly pick themselves after becoming the first Premier League side in over 20 years to lose after being three goals up.

Antoine Semenyo scored twice as Bournemouth produced a remarkable second-half showing to win 4-3 after trailing 3-0 at half-time.

Defeat dented Luton’s survival hopes and the Hatters face a huge relegation clash with Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

Edwards insists he will not allow them to feel sorry for themselves after a torrid night on the south coast.

“We put ourselves in such a good position to win a Premier League game of football and to be sat here talking about a defeat is tough,” he said.

“Huge game on Saturday. Losing is difficult anyway but in that manner it does hurt but if we can’t pick ourselves up for a huge Premier League game then there’s something wrong.”

It was an emotional night for Edwards even before kick-off, with captain Tom Lockyer returning to thank the medical staff who helped to save his life 88 days earlier when this fixture was abandoned after the Luton captain suffered a cardiac arrest.

“Seeing Tom speaking to the paramedics, the people who saved his life was a bit emotional. He’s able to hold his new-born baby because of them,” Edwards added.

“Sometimes it’s important to have a bit of realism and that maybe brings home a little bit of what’s important.”

Luton were rampant in the first half and their opening goal came as early as the ninth minute after Jordan Clark stood up a sumptuous cross for Tahith Chong to head in at the far post.

They scored a brilliant second after 31 minutes as an incisive one-two between Chong and Alfie Doughty saw the latter cross low to Chiedozie Ogbene, who rounded off a superb team move.

Edwards must surely have thought his team had sealed their third away win of the season when Issa Kabore drove upfield to pick out the excellent Ross Barkley, who powerfully fired the ball high into the net to give the Hatters a considerable cushion going into the break.

But after making two substitutions during the interval, Bournemouth hit back dramatically, scoring three times in 14 minutes at the start of the second half.

The first was a stunning piece of individual brilliance from top scorer Dominic Solanke . The Cherries striker back-heeled the ball between the legs of Daiki Hashioka before chipping it beyond Thomas Kaminski.

The second came after Luton were unable to clear Lewis Cook’s corner to safety and Illia Zabarnyi headed in from close range despite Doughty’s desperate attempts to prevent it crossing the line.

Two minutes later the Vitality Stadium erupted when Semenyo cut in from the right and fired his shot powerfully into the near post to level the scores.

Bournemouth claimed all three points when Semenyo scored his second goal of the game seven minutes from time, collecting the ball from Enes Unal before shooting powerfully across Kaminski to give the Cherries their first home win since Boxing Day.

“The important thing is that the players showed a strong personality because it is easy to hide when you are losing 3-0 at home,” said Andoni Iraola, who became only the fifth Premier League side – and first since 2003 – to win a game in which they trailed by three goals.

“It was important to have the precedent of the last game (when Bournemouth came back from two goals down against Sheffield United).

“The key was to score early. I think Dom’s goal made us believe and the players showed a lot of character.”

Bournemouth became the fifth team in Premier League history to win a game having trailed by three goals.

The Cherries came back from 3-0 down to beat Luton 4-3 at the Vitality Stadium.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the other three-goal comebacks in England’s top tier that resulted in victories.

Leeds 4-3 Derby – November 7 1997

Dean Sturridge’s early brace and an Aljosa Asanovic penalty gave Jim Smith’s Rams a 3-0 lead after 33 minutes at Elland Road.

But Rod Wallace and Harry Kewell scored before half-time for the home team to set up an absorbing second half.

Derby held on until the 82nd minute, when Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink scored from the spot, and the Dutch striker then set up his fellow substitute Lee Bowyer for a last-minute winner.

West Ham 3-4 Wimbledon – September 8 1998

John Hartson’s seventh-minute opener was followed by two Ian Wright goals in 13 minutes as West Ham raced into a 3-0 lead at Upton Park.

Marcus Gayle’s header on the half-hour mark pulled one back before half-time for Wimbledon.

And Joe Kinnear’s men produced a stunning second-half display, with goals from Jason Euell, Gayle and Efan Ekoku securing a dramatic victory.

Tottenham 3-5 Man Utd – September 29 2001

Glenn Hoddle’s Tottenham were in dreamland when Dean Richards, Les Ferdinand and Christian Ziege all struck before half-time at White Hart Lane.

But Manchester United responded in the first minute of the second period through Andy Cole before Laurent Blanc’s header and Ruud van Nistelrooy’s finish made it 3-3.

Juan Sebastian Veron fired United in front with 16 minutes left before David Beckham had the final say.

Wolves 4-3 Leicester – October 25 2003

Two goals from Ferdinand plus a Riccardo Scimeca effort put Leicester 3-0 up after 35 minutes at Molineux.

But Wolves mounted a four-goal fightback in the second half to take all three points.

Colin Cameron started the recovery in the 52nd minute and added a second from the spot eight minutes later. Alex Rae levelled and Henri Camara registered a late winner.

Antoine Semenyo scored twice as Bournemouth produced a stunning second-half display to recover from three goals down and beat Luton 4-3.

On an evening that saw Tom Lockyer return to the Vitality Stadium to thank the medical staff who had helped to save his life 88 days earlier, when this fixture was abandoned after the Luton captain suffered a cardiac arrest, the hosts’ rousing response put a huge dent in the Hatters’ survival hopes.

Luton raced into a three-goal lead at half-time before a dramatic second-half showing from Andoni Iraola’s side.

The visitors opened the scoring in the ninth minute after Jordan Clark stood up a sumptuous cross for Tahith Chong to head in at the far post.

Bournemouth sought an immediate response and Ryan Christie and Luis Sinisterra both went close to scoring but saw their efforts blocked by Thomas Kaminski.

Iraola’s side had gone two goals behind against bottom club Sheffield United at the weekend before fighting back to earn a point in stoppage time.

They found themselves in a similar position when Luton scored a brilliant second goal after 31 minutes.

It came after an incisive one-two between Chong and Alfie Doughty, before the latter crossed low to Chiedozie Ogbene, who rounded off a superb team move.

Edwards must surely have thought his team had sealed their third away win of the season when Issa Kabore drove upfield to pick out the excellent Ross Barkley, who powerfully fired the ball high into the net to give the Hatters a considerable cushion going into the break.

But after making two substitutions during the interval, Bournemouth hit back dramatically, scoring three times in 14 minutes at the start of the second half.

The first was a stunning piece of individual brilliance from top scorer Dominic Solanke. The Cherries striker back-heeled the ball between the legs of Daiki Hashioka before chipping it beyond Kaminski.

The second came after Luton were unable to clear Lewis Cook’s corner to safety and Illia Zabarnyi headed in from close range despite Doughty’s desperate attempts to prevent it crossing the line.

Two minutes later the Vitality Stadium erupted when Semenyo cut in from the right and fired his shot powerfully into the near post to level the scores.

Bournemouth were not done there and claimed all three points when Semenyo scored his second seven minutes from time, collecting the ball from Enes Unal before shooting powerfully across Kaminski to give the Cherries their first home win since Boxing Day.

Tom Lockyer met medics who helped save his life as he returned to the scene of his on-pitch cardiac arrest for Luton’s re-arranged meeting with Bournemouth.

Lockyer, 29, was hospitalised for five days after his heart stopped for two minutes and 40 seconds in the Hatters’ abandoned Premier League game at the Vitality Stadium on December 16.

The Wales defender, subsequently fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, has since conceded it is “out of his hands” if he will ever play again.

But, 88 days on from the incident which rocked the game, Lockyer met with the medical team who saved his life and was due to be presented to the crowd at half-time of Wednesday’s game.

“It will be emotional going back and reliving that experience but we know we have to do it,” said Luton manager Rob Edwards on Tuesday.

“It was a really difficult experience that we all went through. The main thing now is that Locks is OK and the silver lining is that some good will have come from it, with more awareness on CPR and the importance of knowing what to do in those emergency situations.”

A Bournemouth supporters’ trust has raised more than £2,000 to put on four coaches for Luton fans to make the 240-mile round-trip from Bedfordshire to the south coast.

There are also plans for a minute’s applause in tribute to the medics who saved Lockyer.

“They are the true heroes,” added Edwards. “It is only football and there are more important things.

“What those guys did in the most pressurised moment was incredible and they deserve all the attention and affection that they are going to get.”

Lockyer – whose girlfriend gave birth to their first child, a daughter, at the end of last month – also suffered a collapse during May’s Championship play-off victory against Coventry and it remains uncertain if he will return to the pitch.

“It is day-by-day at the moment,” said Edwards. “He will enter into a period of rehabilitation but that can take a long time, months, so it is one step at a time at the moment.

“He will be coming down (Wednesday), which is great. He has got bigger things on his mind with a new baby and he is in a position where that is his main focus right now.

“We would love to have him here on a weekly basis and for him to be around more and lean on his experiences and he will help us.

“It will be really nice for him to meet those heroes and the supporters and he will get a brilliant reception. That will be really nice for him but it will be emotional, too.”

Tom Lockyer will return to the scene of his terrifying on-pitch cardiac arrest when Luton face Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on Wednesday night.

Lockyer, 29, was hospitalised for five days after his heart stopped for two minutes and 40 seconds in the Hatters’ abandoned Premier League game against Bournemouth on December 16.

The 29-year-old Welshman, subsequently fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, has since admitted it is “out of his hands” if he will ever play again.

But, 88 days on from the incident which rocked the game, Lockyer is due to meet with the medical team who saved his life before being presented to the crowd at half-time of Wednesday’s re-arranged Premier League fixture.

“It will be emotional going back and reliving that experience but we know we have to do it,” said Luton manager Rob Edwards.

“Locks will meet the people who helped saved his life and see their supporters, who were unbelievable on the day.

“It will be nice to be able to close that part of the story up and concentrate on moving forward.

“It was a really difficult experience that we all went through. The main thing now is that Locks is okay and the silver lining is that some good will have come from it with more awareness on CPR and the importance of knowing what to do in those emergency situations.”

A Bournemouth supporters’ trust has raised more than £2,000 to put on four coaches for Luton fans to make the 240-mile round-trip from Bedfordshire to the south coast.

There are also plans for a minute’s applause in tribute to the medics who saved Lockyer.

“They are the true heroes,” added Edwards. “It is only football and there are more important things.

“What those guys did in the most pressurised moment was incredible and they deserve all the attention and affection that they are going to get.”

Lockyer, whose girlfriend gave birth to their first child, a daughter, at the end of last month also suffered a collapse during May’s Championship play-off victory against Coventry and it remains uncertain if he will return to the pitch.

“It is day-by-day at the moment, said Edwards. “He will enter into a period of rehabilitation but that can take a long time, months, so it is one step at a time at the moment.

“He will be coming down tomorrow which is great. He has got bigger things on his mind with a new baby and he is in a position where that is his main focus right now.

“We would love to have him here on a weekly basis and for him to be around more and lean on his experiences and he will help us.

“It will be really nice for him to meet those heroes and the supporters and he will get a brilliant reception. That will be really nice for him but it will be emotional, too.”

The Hatters, three points adrift of safety, will be looking to build on Cauley Woodrow’s late goal at Crystal Palace last weekend which salvaged a draw and ended a run of four consecutive league defeats.

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola is confident his players will stay focused during what is expected to be an emotional occasion when they face Luton at the Vitality Stadium again.

Wednesday night’s Premier League game is the rearranged fixture from December 16, which was abandoned when Hatters captain Tom Lockyer collapsed on the pitch after suffering a cardiac arrest during the second half.

Lockyer – who was fitted with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator after he was hospitalised for five days – is set to travel with the Luton squad to the Vitality Stadium.

The 29-year-old Welshman – who had also suffered a collapse during the 2023 Championship play-off final at Wembley – is set to be meeting some of the people whose swift actions that afternoon helped save his life.

Iraola is happy to see Lockyer making a recovery and feels when the game kicks off, everyone will have their mind on producing the required performance.

“I have been a player and when the referee whistles at the start of the game, you focus because you have difficult things to do,” Iraola told a press conference.

“You think about the football stuff and the opponent you have, also what you can do whenever you receive the next ball.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tom Lockyer (@tomlockyer)

“I think the players will be focussed on the football side because they are used to it.”

Iraola has no doubts Lockyer will receive a warm welcome at the Vitality Stadium.

“Since the first seconds (after) it happened, everyone was very clear that the most important thing that mattered was for him to recover,” the Cherries boss said.

“The most important thing is he is much better. He has recovered well and I am happy to know that he is doing well.

“It will be amazing if he comes and we can see him. I am happy to know he is doing well.”

Bournemouth fought back from two goals down to draw 2-2 against Sheffield United on Saturday with a stoppage-time equaliser from Enes Unal.

Iraola is expecting just as stern a test against the Hatters, who could lift themselves out of the relegation zone if they win on Wednesday night.

“Luton and almost all of the teams, we are in a battle. All of the teams need the points and it’s important,” he said.

“The later you play, the more important the points are because you don’t have so many chances after.

“They are a team that have changed a little bit since the last time we played them here, they are much more aggressive in the press and are keeping more possession.

“They are playing more from the back, they have very good midfielders and then they have a lot of pace.

“We have to prepare for a very different game than the one we played the other day against Sheffield United.”

Dominic Solanke had not trained fully in the run-up to the Sheffield United game as he managed a knee issue, but completed 90 minutes so should feature again.

“He has not been affected by the injury, performance wise,” said Iraola, who remains without defender Marcos Senesi because of a thigh problem.

“He finished better in the game than the previous one against Burnley.”