"At a Loss for Words to Express Our Condolences"... Spanish Forward Dies After Collision With Goalkeeper

Tenerife Forward Jesus de Miguel Dies in Spain's Second Division
Struck in the Chest by Opposing Goalkeeper's Knee in Stoppage Time
Copa del Rey Matches Postponed; Spanish Soccer Mourns

Forward Jesus de Miguel, 30, of Tenerife, who collapsed after colliding with the opposing goalkeeper during a Spanish second-division match, has died.

Spanish Soccer Player Jesus de Miguel Dies After Collision

Jesus de Miguel, a 30-year-old Tenerife forward, died after colliding with the opposing goalkeeper and collapsing during a Spanish second-division soccer match. CD Tenerife

According to foreign media outlets, including AFP, on Nov. 3, Spanish second-division club CD Tenerife announced in an official statement that "forward Jesus de Miguel Alameda tragically passed away at 8 a.m. today." The club said it was "at a loss for words to express our condolences" and asked that the family's privacy be respected.

The incident occurred the previous day during a 2026-2027 LaLiga 2 match between Tenerife and FC Andorra at Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. Tenerife had led 2-0 but conceded goals in the 35th and 42nd minutes of the second half, allowing Andorra to level the score at 2-2. During stoppage time, de Miguel chased the ball on a counterattack and collided in midair with Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono, who had run out of the penalty area. Owono's knee is believed to have struck de Miguel in the chest. The referee sent Owono off, and the match was stopped in the 108th minute.

De Miguel clutched his chest and lost consciousness. After receiving cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while in cardiac arrest, he was taken to the intensive care unit of a nearby university hospital. He briefly regained a pulse, but his neurological injuries rapidly worsened overnight, and he was pronounced dead a day after the incident.

Born in 1996, de Miguel came through the youth system at CD Leganes. He helped Castellon earn promotion to the second division in 2024 and joined Tenerife last summer after the club was relegated to the third division in 2025. In September 2025, shortly after joining the club, he was named Player of the Round. Tenerife secured promotion to the second division in May 2026. He is survived by his wife and one-year-old daughter. His wife reportedly watched the incident from the stands with their daughter.

Club Involved in Collision Says There Was "No Malice"... Spanish Soccer Mourns

Owono, 25, an Equatorial Guinean and the other player involved in the collision, reportedly wept and prayed in the locker room immediately after the incident and later deactivated his social media accounts. He reportedly tried to apologize to de Miguel's family in person even before news of the death became public. Andorra said it was "devastated" and stressed that "there was no malice at any point." The club also said it would provide psychological counseling to its players and staff.

Spain's National Police have launched an investigation into the circumstances of de Miguel's death on their own initiative. The High Court of Justice of the Canary Islands explained that "any death that is not of natural causes must be subject to a judicial investigation on the court's own initiative, even if it was accidental." In his match report, the referee wrote that Owono "raised his leg while contesting the ball and collided violently with his opponent using excessive force." Regardless of whether he is charged with involuntary manslaughter, Owono could face a suspension of up to 12 matches.

Meanwhile, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) postponed the first-round matches of the Copa del Rey and the third-round matches of the Copa de la Reina scheduled for Nov. 3. Real Madrid held a moment of silence before morning training, while Barcelona and Atletico Madrid also issued statements of condolence.

In September 2025, CD Colindres goalkeeper Raul Ramirez, 19, died two days after suffering a head injury during a match in Spain's fifth division. In January 1987, CD Malaga goalkeeper Jose Antonio Gallardo, 25, died of a brain hemorrhage after colliding with another player.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.