FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono has described the period following the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel as "the most difficult days of my life." The 25-year-old goalkeeper expressed "enormous pain" over the loss of the 30-year-old striker, who died after suffering a serious injury during a Spanish second division match on Monday.
In a statement released by his club on Wednesday, Owono said he is struggling to find words and is finding it very hard to come to terms with the event. "I think of him, his family, and everyone who loved him," Owono stated. He added that while he knows there will be many issues to address, he is currently unable to think about anything other than the pain everyone is experiencing.
The incident occurred during the final minutes of a match between Tenerife and Andorra on Monday. The teams were drawing 2-2 seven minutes into stoppage time when Owono ran toward the center circle to clear a long ball. His knee appeared to collide with De Miguel, who lay motionless on the pitch. Medical staff treated the striker before he was transported by ambulance from the Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez to a hospital. Owono was sent off, and the match was abandoned.
Following the tragedy, Spanish police opened a routine investigation into possible involuntary manslaughter. Under Spanish law, any death that is deemed non-natural automatically triggers a judicial inquiry.
Owono's teammate, center-back Lautaro Spatz, defended the goalkeeper on social media on Wednesday, stating that Owono "would never intentionally hurt anyone." Spatz noted that while unfortunate incidents can happen in football, no one could imagine that one of them might end with such tragic consequences. Owono, who had over 30,000 followers on Instagram on Tuesday morning, has since deactivated his account.
The president of Equatorial Guinea's football federation, Venancio Tomas Micha, issued a statement on Tuesday offering "all our human and professional backing" to Owono. Micha described the goalkeeper as the "involuntary protagonist of this tragic incident" who is living through the situation with "deep sorrow and distress."
Tenerife announced on Wednesday that they will begin six official days of mourning, suspending all club activities. The club's players, staff, and officials will attend De Miguel's funeral in Navahermosa, Toledo. The club also plans to open its home ground on Saturday evening for supporters to "bid a fitting farewell."
De Miguel, a father of one who joined Tenerife in the summer of 2025, was honored with a minute's silence at all games in European competition this week. His family, via a club statement, thanked everyone for their messages of support and asked that their privacy be respected at this terrible time. Matches for both Tenerife and Andorra scheduled for the weekend against Granada and Mallorca, respectively, have been postponed.
