Barcelona and Atlético silence Champions League anthem to mourn Jesús de Miguel

Barcelona, Atlético Madrid and Villarreal refused to play the Champions League anthem before their Tuesday fixtures as European football paid tribute to Tenerife forward Jesús de Miguel, who died aged 30 after suffering cardiac arrest during a second-division match on Monday.

De Miguel collapsed after being struck in the chest by FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono during the Spanish second-division game. He suffered cardiac arrest as a result of the collision and did not survive.

At the three Spanish venues and at grounds across Europe — including Old Trafford, where Manchester United hosted Roma — a moment of silence was observed and a picture of De Miguel was displayed on stadium screens before kickoff.

The tributes extended beyond matchday. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and midfielder Mikel Merino, both Spanish, opened their pre-match press conferences ahead of Wednesday’s game against Slavia Prague with personal tributes to De Miguel.

The decision by the Spanish clubs to silence the anthem — one of the most recognisable pieces of music in club football — underlined the weight of the loss felt across the country. De Miguel was a second-division player, far from the spotlight of the Champions League stage, yet the sport’s biggest clubs chose to mark his passing in one of the most visible ways available to them.