Jesús Owono says De Miguel’s death has brought ‘the most difficult days of my life’

FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono said on Wednesday, 4 November, that he was experiencing “the most difficult days of my life” after Tenerife forward Jesús de Miguel died following an on-field collision during their Spanish second-division match on 2 November, according to BBC Sport. Owono made the statement through his club, expressing grief for De Miguel and those close to him.

“I struggle to find the words, and it is very hard for me to come to terms with what has happened,” Owono said in the club statement. “I feel enormous pain over the loss of Jesus. I think of him, his family, and everyone who loved him.” He added that he would face any future questions with respect.

What happened in the Tenerife-Andorra match

The Guardian reported that De Miguel, 30, suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest, was treated on the pitch for about five minutes and was taken to hospital in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. He died on Tuesday morning, 3 November. Tenerife had said medics recovered a pulse in the ambulance before he was admitted to intensive care, the Guardian reported.

What the inquiry is examining

Spanish police opened a routine investigation into possible involuntary manslaughter after De Miguel’s death, BBC Sport reported. The Guardian said the inquiry would examine events before his death, including the medical attention he received after medics entered the pitch. Tenerife majority shareholder Rayco García told Cadena SER he wanted to wait for the autopsy and investigation before drawing conclusions about the collision or whether anything could have prevented the death.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife’s chief prosecutor, José Luis Sánchez-Jáuregui, told the Spanish news agency EFE that criminal proceedings against Owono were “very unlikely”, according to the Guardian. The inquiry had not resolved the cause of death or questions about the medical response in the reports published on Wednesday.

Tributes and postponed fixtures

Owono’s teammate Lautaro Spatz said the goalkeeper was deeply affected and “would never intentionally hurt anyone”, the Guardian reported. That was Spatz’s defence of his teammate, not a finding by investigators.

Tenerife announced six official days of mourning, suspending club activities, BBC Sport reported. Mourners laid flowers and lit candles beneath a photograph of De Miguel at the club’s Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López. The weekend league fixtures for Tenerife and Andorra, against Granada and Mallorca respectively, were postponed.