Spanish football came together on Thursday as the funeral of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel took place in Navahermosa, Toledo. The 30-year-old striker passed away at 07:00 GMT on Tuesday in hospital after suffering a serious injury during Monday's Spanish second division match against FC Andorra. De Miguel had collapsed and lay motionless on the pitch following a collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono, who was shown a red card before the match was permanently abandoned. In his parents' hometown, situated roughly 125km from Madrid, De Miguel's Tenerife team-mates carried his casket prior to the service held at San Miguel Arcangel.
A host of high-profile sporting figures were in attendance to pay their respects, including current Spain national team manager Luis de la Fuente, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, Atletico Madrid chief executive Miguel Angel Gil Marin, and former national and Real Madrid coach Jose Antonio Camacho. Releasing a statement via the player's agent, Manuel Hernandez, De Miguel's family expressed deep gratitude for the continuous messages, calls, and gestures of support, noting that the lasting impression he made on so many people will always stay with them. As mourners left flowers and lit candles beneath a black-and-white portrait of the forward at Tenerife's Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez, his family asked for complete privacy to grieve in peace.
Tributes for the forward, who originally joined Tenerife in the summer of 2025, extended across the continent with a minute's silence observed at every European competition fixture staged this week. Owono, the goalkeeper involved in Monday's tragic collision, expressed immense grief in a statement released by Andorra on Wednesday, describing the situation as the most difficult days of his life while sending his thoughts to De Miguel's relatives and loved ones.
Looking ahead to the upcoming sporting calendar, the Spanish footballers' union (AFE) has requested that all matches scheduled for this weekend be postponed in honour of De Miguel. While Spanish sides involved in European competition played their matches this week, several midweek cup ties have already been called off alongside Tenerife's trip to Granada and Andorra's fixture against Mallorca. The AFE declared that its members across every category believe unanimously that the humane and psychological conditions required to conduct competition under normal circumstances are currently not present.