On a November afternoon in Spain's second tier, a moment of violent contact between two footballers ended in the death of a 30-year-old forward, Jesus de Miguel, the day after the match was abandoned. The federation has now handed goalkeeper Jesus Owono the longest sanction its rules allow, a twelve-match suspension, while the match itself will stand as a 2-2 draw that no one will ever finish. Behind the paperwork sits a young man who has chosen silence and family over any public defence, and a sport that must decide what its rules mean when a game's ordinary contest becomes irreversible. Whet
Goalkeeper Jesus Owono Handed 12-Match Ban Over Challenge That Led to Jesus de Miguel's Death
Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel died the day after a challenge by Owono during a second-tier match on 2 November, aged 30.
A 12-match ban, and a goalkeeper who has not decided if he will play again
Mark
The ban is the headline, but what exactly did the committee rule on?
Mimi
It ruled on the referee's report. Owono was sent off for striking De Miguel in the chest with his leg, with excessive force, while the ball was in play. The committee gave the maximum, 12 matches.
Luke
Worth noting the committee said it was bound by what the referee recorded. So this is a finding about the report, not an independent account of intent.
Mark
And the match itself?
Mimi
It won't be replayed. It was abandoned seven minutes into stoppage time with the score at 2-2, and that stands as the result.
Luke
The federation's reasoning is that this is the most respectful course. That's their judgment, not something the rules compelled, as far as the reporting shows.
Mark
What do we know about how Owono is doing?
Mimi
He said through his club on 4 November that these were the most difficult days of his life and that he felt enormous pain.
Luke
That statement came via the club, so we have his words but not a direct interview. And we don't know what he has decided about playing.
Mark
What did his manager say?
Mimi
Carles Manso said Owono is with his family, completely free to decide whether to return, and the club will give him space.
Luke
Which means a 12-match ban may be moot for now. Nothing reported says when, or if, he will play again.
Il Polso
- A challenge in stoppage time turned a second-tier match into a death, and the shock has travelled from the pitch to the federation's disciplinary offices.
- The referee's report recorded Owono striking an opponent in the chest with excessive force, leaving the committee bound to its facts and to the maximum sanction.
- The match was abandoned and will not be replayed, so the 2-2 scoreline is locked in as a permanent, painful record.
- Owono, silent except for one statement of grief, is spending time with his family while FC Andorra says he is free to decide whether he ever returns.
- The ban is formal and final on paper, but the question of whether he will ever step onto a pitch again remains unresolved.
On a November afternoon in Spain's second tier, a moment of violent contact between two footballers ended in the death of a 30-year-old forward, Jesus de Miguel, the day after the match was abandoned. The federation has now handed goalkeeper Jesus Owono the longest sanction its rules allow, a twelve-match suspension, while the match itself will stand as a 2-2 draw that no one will ever finish. Behind the paperwork sits a young man who has chosen silence and family over any public defence, and a sport that must decide what its rules mean when a game's ordinary contest becomes irreversible. Whether the suspension will ever be served on a pitch is a question that belongs, for now, only to Owono.
The Spanish football federation's disciplinary committee has handed FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono a 12-match suspension, the maximum it could impose, for the challenge that preceded the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel. The collision took place on 2 November, late in a second-tier match between the two clubs. Owono, 25, was sent off, and the game was abandoned at the moment of the incident. De Miguel died the following day at the age of 30.
The committee said it could only rely on what the referee had recorded: that Owono had struck an opponent in the chest with his leg, using excessive force while the ball was in play. Given that conduct and the outcome that followed, it judged the top sanction justified. In a separate ruling, the federation decided the match would not be replayed, and the 2-2 scoreline will stand, a choice it called the most respectful course given the tragedy.
Owono, who plays for Equatorial Guinea, has said little beyond a statement issued by his club on 4 November, in which he described the most difficult days of his life and his deep pain at De Miguel's death. His manager, Carles Manso, said on Thursday that the goalkeeper has not decided whether he will play again. He is with his family, and the club intends to give him the space and support to choose whether, and when, to return.
The Spanish football federation's disciplinary committee has given FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono a 12-match suspension for the challenge that preceded the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel. The ban, announced this week, is the maximum the committee could impose.
The collision happened on 2 November, in the closing stages of a second-tier match between the two clubs. Owono, who is 25, was sent off after colliding with De Miguel. The match was abandoned seven minutes into stoppage time, at the moment the incident occurred. De Miguel died the following day. He was 30.
In explaining its ruling, the committee said it was obliged to base its decision on the facts expressly recorded in the referee's report. That report stated that Owono was sent off for violently striking an opponent in the chest with his leg, using excessive force, while the ball was in play. The committee noted that the tragic outcome, the death of Jesus de Miguel Alameda, is public knowledge. It added that the nature of the conduct described and the accompanying circumstances meant the maximum sanction of a 12-match suspension was justified.
A separate decision dealt with the match itself. The federation ruled that the game will not be replayed, which spares anyone from having to restart play from the exact moment of the incident. The teams were level at 2-2 when it was abandoned, and that score will stand as the result. A federation committee called this the most respectful course of action, given what it described as the extraordinary and tragic circumstances of the case.
Owono, who plays internationally for Equatorial Guinea, has spoken only through his club. In a statement issued on his behalf on 4 November, two days after the match, he said he was living through the most difficult days of his life and felt enormous pain over De Miguel's death.
On Thursday, FC Andorra manager Carles Manso said Owono has not yet decided whether he will play again. The goalkeeper is spending time with his family, Manso said, and is completely free to make any decision about a return. The club's task, he said, is to support him in every way and stay close to him. He added that Owono will be given space to decide whether to come back, when, or whether not to at all, and that he will do so when he feels genuinely ready.
The 12-match ban now stands as a formal marker, but whether Owono ever serves it on the pitch is an open question that, for now, only he can answer.
Citazioni salienti
We will give him space so that he feels completely free to make any decision, whether he wants to return, when, or if he does not want to return.— Carles Manso, FC Andorra manager
The maximum sanction, a 12-match suspension, is justified.— Spanish football federation disciplinary committee
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