The bishop of Tenerife will preside over the funeral of a Spanish footballer who died on Tuesday after a collision with the opposition’s goalkeeper.
On Monday, Jesús de Miguel of CD Tenerife was struck by Jesús Owono, the goalkeeper for FC Andorra, who had come out of his goal and hit De Miguel at force — a challenge for which Owono was subsequently sent off.
De Miguel had a cardiac arrest on the pitch and died in hospital in the early morning of Tuesday.
Eloy Santiago, bishop of Tenerife, will preside over a funeral Mass this Saturday at the stadium of CD Tenerife, the Heliodoro Rodríguez López Stadium.
“Bishop Eloy Santiago shares in the grief and dismay felt by the family of Jesús de Miguel, the Club Deportivo Tenerife, and Canarian society as a whole,” a social media statement from the diocese said.
“He also expresses his deepest condolences for this profound loss. May God be with and sustain the family and friends of Jesús de Miguel. May he rest in peace,” it added.
After the Mass, De Miguel’s body will be transferred to Navahermosa, Toledo, where he will be buried.
The entire CD Tenerife squad is expected to be there for the funeral.
CD Tenerife also put out a statement saying that “there are no words of comfort” nor “absolutely anything that can alleviate this feeling of sadness.”
“We stand with his grieving family, with his loved ones, with all the people of Tenerife who mourn this cruel outcome today,” the statement said.
Abuse for the keeper
Owono deactivated his Instagram account following a deluge of abusive comments, many of them calling him a “murderer.”
Lautaro Spatz, his teammate, took to social media to defend him.
“I also want to say a few words about my teammate, goalkeeper and friend, who is deeply affected by what has happened. Those of us who know him know the kind of person he is, how much he is suffering at this moment, and that he would never intentionally hurt anyone,” he said.
“In football, unfortunate incidents can happen, but no one could imagine that one of them might end with such tragic consequences,” he added.
The Spanish national police have opened an investigation into De Miguel’s death. However, José Luis Sénchez-Jáuregui, Santa Cruz de Tenerife chief prosecutor, said to Spanish news agency EFE that criminal proceedings were “very unlikely.”
