The Spanish footballers’ union, AFE, has called for all matches scheduled for this weekend to be postponed following the death of Tenerife striker Jesús de Miguel.
The union said players across all divisions believe they are not in the right psychological or emotional state to compete following the 30-year-old’s death after a collision during Monday’s Spanish second-division fixture.
In a statement on Thursday, the AFE said footballers had expressed deep sorrow over the loss and questioned whether matches could proceed under normal circumstances.
“The footballers have expressed their deep sorrow for this loss and do not believe that there are the psychological and humane conditions necessary for the competition to be played in normal circumstances,” the union said.
It added that its members “in every category” unanimously believe the weekend fixtures should not be played.
Several matches have already been postponed, including Tenerife’s trip to Granada and FC Andorra’s fixture against Mallorca. Some midweek cup matches were also called off following De Miguel’s death.
However, Spanish clubs competing in European competitions have played their matches this week.
De Miguel died on Tuesday after suffering a serious injury in a collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono during Tenerife’s match at the Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López.
The AFE’s appeal comes amid widespread tributes to the striker, whose death has deeply affected the Spanish football community.
