FC Andorra defender Lautaro Spatz has defended goalkeeper Jesus Owono, saying he would never intentionally hurt another player after the death of CD Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel.
De Miguel died on Tuesday morning after colliding with Owono during Monday’s Spanish second division match. Owono had been sent off after rushing from his goal and making forceful contact with the 30-year-old, who later suffered a cardiac arrest.
The incident has prompted shock and grief across football. Spanish police have opened an investigation into possible involuntary manslaughter, although Santa Cruz de Tenerife chief prosecutor Jose Luis Sanchez-Jauregui told Spanish news agency EFE that criminal proceedings were “very unlikely”.
Sanchez-Jauregui said the investigation was standard practice under Spanish law.
Spatz paid tribute to De Miguel in a post on Instagram, while also offering support to Owono, who has since deleted his account on the social media platform.
The 25-year-old described De Miguel’s death as “a tragedy that has left us completely broken, without words and with a sadness difficult to explain”.
He added: “I also want to have some words for my team-mate, goalkeeper and friend, who is deeply affected by what happened.
“Those of us who know him know the type of person he is, how much he is suffering in these moments and that he would never intend to hurt anyone.
“In football, unfortunate incidents happen but no-one could imagine that one of these could end in such tragic circumstances.”
Supporters gathered outside Tenerife’s Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez stadium to leave tributes to De Miguel, while the club announced six days of official mourning.
A memorial service for the forward will take place at the stadium on Saturday evening, with fans invited to attend.
All domestic Spanish matches scheduled for Tuesday were postponed as a mark of respect. Champions League fixtures went ahead, including Barcelona’s match against Aston Villa at the Nou Camp.
A minute’s silence was observed before Barcelona won 3-0, with Raphinha scoring twice.
After the match, Raphinha declined to discuss the game when speaking to CBS Sports and instead sent his condolences to De Miguel’s family.
“I want to send a lot of strength to the family of Jesus. Today I’m not going to talk about football,” said the Brazilian.
“For me, the truth is it was quite difficult (to play). After seeing the news, of course I didn’t have good feelings. He’s a fellow player and it could have happened to anyone, it could have happened to me.
“He was the same age as me, I don’t know if that’s why it affected me more. It’s been a difficult day. Personally, it touched me a lot.”
The Tenerife match was suspended after the collision, which happened in stoppage time, as distressed players called urgently for medical assistance.
Tenerife said in a statement: “We stand alongside his devastated family, alongside his loved ones… that today weep for this cruel outcome.”
Andorra said it was “deeply shocked”, adding: “The first thing we want to do is express our most sincere condolences to his family, CD Tenerife and all those who were close to him.
“We know that no words can ease such pain, but we want them to know that we are by their side and that we deeply share their sadness.”
