Tenerife striker Jesus de Miguel has passed away after sustaining a serious injury at the age of 30 during a Spanish second-division match.
The forward sustained head and chest injuries in Monday’s match against Andorra after a heavy collision with goalkeeper Jesus Owono, who was sent off for the challenge.
De Miguel’s condition was described as ‘stable but serious’ on Monday, but his health worsened on Tuesday morning, and the Spaniard died at 07:00 GMT.
“Heartbroken, with a lump in our throats and unable to believe this is true, CD Tenerife announces the tragic death of Jesus de Miguel Alameda,” a club statement said.
“There are no words of comfort; there is absolutely nothing that can lessen this overwhelming sadness. We stand with his grieving family, with his loved ones, and with all of Tenerife who mourn this cruel loss today.
“The family of Jesus de Miguel is grateful for each and every expression of support received and also requests, from the bottom of their hearts, the utmost respect for their privacy during these terrible times.”
Andorra, who are co-owned by former Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, said, “With broken hearts and devastated, we want to send our most sincere condolences to the family of Jesus de Miguel, to all his teammates, friends, and to CD Tenerife.”
Tenerife and Andorra were level at 2-2, seven minutes into stoppage time, when the incident took place.
Owono sprinted towards the center circle to clear a long ball when his knee seemed to collide with De Miguel.
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The striker remained motionless on the pitch while medical staff attended to him before he was taken by ambulance from Tenerife’s Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez to hospital.
Players from both sides were visibly shaken by the incident, and several of De Miguel’s team-mates were in tears.
The referee gave Owono a straight red card before calling off the match.
Spanish media outlets, including Marca, reported that De Miguel suffered a cardiac arrest in the ambulance and was resuscitated by paramedics en route to hospital.
Tenerife described his condition on Monday night as “serious but stable,” but a further update on Tuesday morning stated that De Miguel’s condition had “worsened neurologically.”
