“It gives me goosebumps”: Zidane says he is “extremely touched” by the death of Spanish footballer Jesus de Miguel

Zinédine Zidane, the coach of the France team, hoped on Friday to "never (see) that again on a pitch", after the death of Tenerife striker Jesus de Miguel on Tuesday morning following a violent collision with the FC Andorra goalkeeper in the middle of a match in Spain.

“I am extremely touched, as, I think, are all of us. It gives me goosebumps because we don't want to see that on a football field. (...) I hope with all my life that we will never see this again on the pitch,” said Zidane at the Federation headquarters in Paris, when announcing the list of players for two Nations League matches against Italy and Turkey.

The 30-year-old was hit in the air on Monday by Andorra club goalkeeper Jesus Owono. Nearby players immediately called for help and Jesus de Miguel was rushed to Tenerife hospital, where he was initially treated in “stable, although serious, condition”.

Victim of cardiorespiratory arrest, according to the local press on Tuesday, he did not survive the shock despite several hours spent in intensive care, where his condition “worsened from a neurological point of view”, according to his club. The French coach affirmed that this drama, which shook the world of football, was not going to change the way in which he was going to ask his players to approach duels.

“I am sad about what happened, especially sad for the family because we don’t want to see that,” he still clarified. The AFE, the Spanish footballers' union, requested on Thursday, the day of the player's funeral, the postponement of all professional meetings over the weekend, as a sign of "respect" and "humanity".

Several matches have been postponed this week, notably in the King's Cup and Queen's Cup, as well as those of Tenerife, Andorra and Castellon (De Miguel's former club) scheduled for this weekend in the Spanish second division.