On a sad day for the round leather game,
the world of football has joined hands together to mourn the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel.
The striker suffered head and chest injuries in a heavy collision with goalkeeper Jesus Owono during a Spanish second division match against FC Andorra on Monday.
The condition of De Miguel was described as stable but serious on Monday, but his health went from bad to worst on Tuesday morning and the Spaniard died at 07:00 GMT.
A minute’s silence was held before Tuesday evening’s Champions League games across Europe.
That will be repeated for Wednesday’s matches, as well as all Europa League and Conference League matches this week.
Mourners laid flowers and lit candles beneath a black and white image of De Miguel at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodriguez Lopez, Tenerife’s home ground.
Tenerife stated in a statement on Tuesday evening they will start six official days of mourning, with all club activities suspended during this time.
The team’s players, staff and officials will attend De Miguel’s funeral, which will hold in Navahermosa, Toledo.
Tenerife will also open their home ground on Saturday evening to allow supporters to “bid a fitting farewell”.
“Jesus de Miguel’s family would like to thank everyone for their messages of support and, from the bottom of their hearts, ask that their privacy be respected at this terrible time. May he rest in peace,” the statement added.
“We are torn by the news,” said Fran Leon, president of Tenerife’s federation of supporters’ clubs.
“All of the island is in mourning. All of Canarias is in mourning. It’s a shared pain.”
Fan David Tejera said De Miguel’s “effort” and “passion” for Tenerife would endure.
“You are already part of the blue and white history,” he said.
Tenerife and Andorra were tied 2-2 seven minutes into stoppage time when the incident occurred.
Owono ran towards the centre circle to clear a long ball when his knee appeared to collide with De Miguel.
The striker lay motionless on the pitch as medical staff treated him before he was taken by ambulance from Tenerife’s ground to hospital.
Players from both teams were visibly distressed by the incident, with a number of De Miguel’s team-mates in tears.
