Journalist: Jesús de Miguel’s tragic death should mark a turning point for football safety reforms

Javi Hernández-Navarro, a journalist for the Spanish media outlet "ARA," recently published an opinion piece about the tragic death of Tenerife player Jesús de Miguel following a collision with FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono during a match. He argued that the tragedy should not lead to the goalkeeper being blamed unilaterally, but should instead serve as an opportunity to promote safety reforms in football.

The tragedy occurred during a LaLiga 2 match between Tenerife and FC Andorra. In the final moments of the game, Jesús de Miguel was trying to score what would have been the winning goal for his team, making it 3-2. FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono rushed out aggressively to deny him and secure an away point for his side.

The article points out that the tragedy resulted from a combination of accident and recklessness. In the collision, Owono's knee struck Jesús de Miguel violently in the chest, causing cardiopulmonary arrest and irreversible neurological damage, which ultimately led to his death.

Owono's challenge, however, was deemed excessively dangerous, and the referee immediately showed him a straight red card. Due to the dangerous nature of the challenge, he now faces a potential suspension of up to 12 official matches.

The author believes that Jesús de Miguel, along with his family, friends and teammates, are undoubtedly the victims of this tragedy. However, portraying Jesús Owono as the culprit—or even as a murderer deserving severe punishment—overlooks the fact that football is a contact Sport in which players often have to make split-second decisions, and mistakes can happen in an instant.

The article states: “The unintentional act by this 25-year-old player during a match led to the death of a fellow professional, and he will now have to carry this heavy psychological burden for the rest of his life. It hurts even to write these words.”

The author further argues that Jesús de Miguel's death does not warrant so-called revenge in the form of punishing Jesús Owono for manslaughter; the tragedy is already sorrowful enough.

Rather than assigning blame to individuals, the author believes it is more important to consider how to prevent similar incidents. For example, should all stadiums be required to provide ambulance access wide enough to ensure a prompt emergency response? As modern football becomes increasingly physical, do players need better protection during collisions?

The article also cites professional cycling as an example. Thirty years ago, professional cyclists often wore only ordinary caps on descents during mountain stages, whereas helmets are now mandatory in races.

In 2003, Kazakh cyclist Andrei Kivilev died in a crash during a race, prompting the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to make helmet use mandatory.

The author concludes by stressing that the football community should learn from Jesús de Miguel’s death and treat it as a turning point for improving match safety, rather than allowing similar tragedies to occur again.