Reported by Al Jazeera
Jesus Owono has become a global figure overnight after the goalkeeper’s challenge led to the death of Tenerife forward Jesus de Miguel.
The 30-year-old died in hospital in Santa Cruz on Tuesday morning after suffering a cardiac arrest in the wake of a high challenge by Andorra goalkeeper Owono in stoppage time of Monday’s La Liga 2 game.
Owono received a straight red card for his challenge and has since received criticism from around the world for his part in the tragedy while local police are reported to have begun an investigation into the incident,
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The 25-year-old goalkeeper was born in Bata, Equatorial Guinea, but moved to Spain’s Basque Country as a child.
His first club was Antiguoko, a youth club in San Sebastian, at the age of eight, but after moving on to Real Sociedad, he played for the Basque Country’s representative side at under-16 level.
He joined Alaves in 2017 and worked his way through the youth ranks before making his first-team debut in a 1-1 draw against Real Sociedad in January 2022, becoming the first international born in his country to appear in La Liga.
He went on to make 20 appearances in the league and Copa del Rey but spent last season on loan with La Liga 2 side Andorra, keeping six clean sheets in 20 league games before earning a permanent move in August and signing a two-year deal.
Owono made his Equatorial Guinea debut shortly after turning 18 in March 2019 and has gone on to represent his country 46 times, playing every minute of their three group games in the 2025 AFCON edition and both their AFCON 2027 qualifiers against DR Congo and Sierra Leone in September.
After colliding with De Miguel in the centre circle, Owono did not turn back to look at his opponent on the ground but immediately began walking towards the touchline, anticipating the red card which Manuel Angel Perez Hernandez swiftly brandished.
However, as he walked off, after exchanging a handshake with teammate Nacho Quintana, he turned back as medical staff were beckoned frantically onto the pitch and…