Jesus Owono speaks of grief in statement after De Miguel’s death

FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono has spoken publicly about his grief following the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel, with his club releasing a personal statement on Wednesday. BBC Sport reported that the 25-year-old described an overwhelming sense of loss and said he was struggling to process what had happened after Monday’s Spanish second-division match.

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Owono said his thoughts were with De Miguel, the forward’s family and everyone close to him. He acknowledged that there would be matters to address and said he would approach them respectfully, but explained that his immediate focus remained on the player who had died and the shared pain surrounding his death. Andorra said the statement conveyed words the goalkeeper wished to share personally.

De Miguel, 30, died following a collision with Owono during the match in Tenerife. According to the Associated Press, the goalkeeper had rushed towards midfield as De Miguel challenged for a long ball. Owono received a straight red card in added time. Spanish police opened an investigation, with AP reporting that Spanish law requires judicial inquiries into deaths from non-natural causes, including accidents. The opening of that inquiry does not itself establish criminal responsibility.

Support for Owono has also come from inside the Andorra dressing room. Reuters reported that defender Lautaro Spatz described his teammate as deeply affected and rejected the suggestion that he would deliberately harm another player. Spatz also offered condolences to De Miguel’s family and Tenerife, placing his support for Owono alongside recognition of the loss suffered by the opposing club.

Andorra has been offering psychological support to anyone at the club who needs it, Reuters reported. The Equatoguinean Football Federation also expressed support for Owono on Tuesday. The goalkeeper, who has made 47 international appearances for Equatorial Guinea, deactivated his Instagram account after receiving online abuse, according to the agency’s report.

BBC Sport reported that Andorra players observed a minute’s silence before a voluntary training session on Wednesday, which Owono did not attend. Both clubs’ league fixtures for the coming weekend, Tenerife against Granada and Andorra against Mallorca, have been postponed.