FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono published a statement on Wednesday following the death of Jesús de Miguel, the CD Tenerife striker he collided with during a Spanish second division match. He wrote that he could not find the words and paid tribute to the player: „Rest in peace, Jesús.”
The goalkeeper’s statement
Owono wrote that he is suffering deeply over the death of his rival, and that his thoughts are with the deceased, his family and everyone who loved him. He acknowledged that many questions will be asked about the circumstances of the tragedy. He said he would approach them with the utmost respect and face whatever the coming days bring.
The 25-year-old goalkeeper, who has 47 caps for Equatorial Guinea, deactivated his Instagram account after the incident. Abusive comments, including the label “killer”, appeared under his earlier posts. The Equatorial Guinean football federation said the player is experiencing deep sorrow and grief.
Support from the dressing room
FC Andorra defender Lautaro Spatz came to his teammate’s defence. He wrote on social media that De Miguel’s death is a tragedy that has devastated the players. He stressed that Owono is taking it very hard and would never deliberately hurt anyone. Spatz also offered condolences to the family of the deceased and to CD Tenerife.
What happened on the pitch
The collision occurred on Monday, 2 November, during the FC Andorra – CD Tenerife match. The goalkeeper came off his line for a long pass and struck the onrushing striker in the chest with his knee. In the 97th minute, with the score at 2-2, the Andorran club’s goalkeeper Owono was shown a red card. De Miguel was taken to hospital and placed in intensive care. He died on Tuesday, 3 November, at 8 a.m. local time, as CD Tenerife confirmed. For more details, see our article on the death of the Tenerife striker.
The Spanish police have opened an investigation into the matter. According to available information, this is a standard procedure in incidents of this kind.
Mourning and tribute on Saturday
CD Tenerife has declared six days of official mourning. Fans gathered outside the Heliodoro Rodríguez López stadium in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. On Saturday at 18:00, a ceremony commemorating the player will be held at the stadium, and the club has invited fans to attend.
On Tuesday, before training, FC Andorra honoured the deceased with a minute of silence and offered condolences to his family and to Tenerife. The club also announced that its round 13 match against RCD Mallorca has been postponed.
