Spain coach among mourners bidding farewell to De Miguel

Spain's World Cup-winning coach Luis de la Fuente and Real Madrid's president Florentino Perez were among several hundred mourners who attended the funeral of Tenerife striker Jesus De Miguel in Navahermosa on Thursday. The collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono during a second division match on Monday led to De Miguel's death at the age of 30.

Around 400 mourners, mostly dressed in black, gathered outside the church to greet the funeral procession. De Miguel's Tenerife teammates served as pall bearers and carried his coffin into the church. Flags flew at half mast in Navahermosa, De Miguel's birthplace, following a three-day mourning declaration by the council. The footballers' union requested that all weekend matches be postponed as a mark of respect, with players expressing deep sorrow and stating that normal competition conditions were not present.

Owono, 25, received an outpouring of online abuse, much of it racist, after the tragedy. He spoke of his immense pain, saying, "These are the hardest days of my life." De Miguel's death marked the second incident of a player dying suddenly after being taken ill on the pitch, following Portuguese midfielder Quevin Castro's passing earlier this month.