A footballer who lost 15 years of memory in a brutal holiday attack has returned from a visit to the surgeons who saved his life on the two year anniversary of the assault.

Robbie Hughes, of Wallington, travelled with his family to Greece to thank the doctors who operated on his skull when he was hit with a bottle and had his head stamped on outside a Malia nightclub on June 17, 2008.

Mr Hughes, who played for Sutton United and Croydon Athletic, survived four life-saving operations and doctors at the time said his recovery was a “miracle”.

However the passionate footballer, who needs rehabilitation for his brain injury, has been told he will need to wear a helmet if he wants to play the game again.

His mother Maggie has since led a campaign to support British victims left in crisis abroad and is now seeking a meeting with new Victims Commissioner Louise Casey.

She said: “It was fantastic to see the doctors who helped. They still call Robbie the miracle man.

“They made an absolute fuss of him.”

However Mrs Hughes said while at times it was a happy visit, it was tinged with sadness as the family remembered the aftermath of his attack.

She said: “The doctors at one point took us into the intensive care unit where he was looked after and I saw his old bed. It was like being punched in the chest. It brought back a lot of memories of what we went through.

“When we took Robbie back to the nightclub where he was attacked, I think that’s when it hit him.

“He said his attackers had taken his life and his memory away from him. He said they had ruined his life.

“We still feel very angry too. The Robbie we knew has gone.”