PARIS.- Before Jesus of Michaelthe Spanish second division footballer who died this Tuesday as a result of a crash in the middle of a match, other footballers died in a game or as a result of a problem suffered during it:
• November 3, 2026: the Spanish forward of the Tenerife, Jesus de Miguel (Spanish 2nd division), died in hospital after suffering a collision with the goalkeeper the day before Andorra.
After remaining unconscious on the grass, De Miguel was taken to the hospital, where his neurological condition worsened. His death was certified on Tuesday morning.
• August 23, 2026: the Portuguese attacking midfielder Kevin Castro He died in hospital after collapsing on the grass the day before ten minutes into a Portuguese 3rd division match between his club, Real Sport Clubeand the Star of Amadora.
• August 27, 2024: the Uruguayan defender Juan Izquierdo suffers a heart problem during a football match Libertadores Cup with National against Sao Paulo. His death was certified a few days later.
• November 11, 2023: Ghanaian international striker Raphael Dwamena collapses in the middle of the championship match Albania. He had a known cardiac history.
• May 6, 2016: the Cameroonian midfielder Patrick Ekengwho played in the Bucharest Dynamo (Romanian 1st division), died in a hospital in the Romanian capital as a result of a heart problem, suffered seven minutes after entering the field of play during a league match.
• April 30, 2015: the Belgian defender Lokeren (Belgian 1st division), Gregory Mertensvictim of a heart attack during a reserve team match against the Genk Three days before, he died in a hospital in Brussels.
• April 14, 2012: the Italian midfielder of the Leghorn, Piermario Morosini, dies after having fainted during a second division soccer match, in Pescara.
• December 29, 2007: the Scottish midfielder Phil O’Donnell suffers a heart problem when he leaves the field of play to be substituted just after scoring a goal for the team Motherwell against him Dundee in the championship Scotland.
The remembered case of Puerta
• August 28, 2007: the Spanish defender of the Sevilla FC (Spanish 1st division), Antonio Puertadies three days after suffering several cardiac arrests in a match.
First he had fainted on the pitch, during a league match against the Getafeand then in the locker room. He suffered from a “ventricular arrhythmia.”
• December 5, 2004: the Brazilian striker of the Dempo, Junior Cristianocollides with the rival goalkeeper during a championship match India against him Bengaluru. He scores and then succumbs to head injuries.
• October 27, 2004: Serginho30 years old, Brazilian player of the Sao Caetano (1st division), collapses during a match against Sao Paulo before passing away.
His death caused enormous controversy in Brazilsince the autopsy revealed that the player’s heart was diseased and he weighed 600 grams, approximately double the normal weight.
The Sao Caetano club, its president and its doctor were harshly sanctioned by sports justice.
• January 25, 2004: the Hungarian forward of the Benfica Lisbon, Miklos Feher24, collapses during a match against the Vitoria de Guimaraes. Taken to the hospital, Feher never regained consciousness. According to the autopsy, he suffered from a heart malformation.
• June 26, 2003: the Cameroonian Marc-Vivien Foé, 28 years old, died in Lyon as a result of a heart problem suffered on the field of play during the semi-final of the Confederations Cup against Colombia.
The player, who was then active in the Manchester Cityhad collapsed in the center circle of the stadium Gerland. Victim of a ruptured aneurysm, he was subjected to cardiac resuscitation for 45 minutes without a positive reaction. According to the autopsy, he suffered from a heart malformation.
