Raphinha Pays Tribute After Barcelona vs Aston Villa

Raphinha has been praised after paying tribute to Jesus de Miguel following Barcelona’s win over Aston Villa in the Champions League.

On Tuesday morning, it was announced that CD Tenerife striker De Miguel had passed away at the age of just 30, following a serious incident during a Spanish Segunda Division match against FC Andorra.

The match was abandoned in stoppage time after De Miguel appeared to lose consciousness following a challenge by FC Andorra goalkeeper Jesus Owono, who was shown a straight red card.

FC Andorra wrote: “With broken hearts and devastated, we want to send our most sincere condolences to the family of Jesús de Miguel, to all his teammates, friends, and to CD Tenerife. Rest in peace.”

Raphinha Praised for Paying Tribute to Jesus de Miguel

REUTERS/Albert Gea

After the news was confirmed, the football world has been paying tribute to De Miguel, with Raphinha doing so following Barcelona’s 3-0 win over Villa at the Spotify Nou Camp.

As reported by Fabrizio Romano, Raphinha stated that tonight is not about football, as he dedicated the win to De Miguel and his family.

Romano wrote: “Raphinha: “Sorry, tonight I don’t want to talk about football. It’s clear that I want to dedicate this win to the fans, but I want to send a lot of strength to Jesus de Miguel’s family.

“May he rest in peace. In the end, this can happen to anyone. The truth is that it’s very tough… when we saw the news this morning, it was complicated. I’m incredibly shocked and sad.

“In the end, you go to play a match, and the same thing could happen to you. From myself, from the club, we want to send a lot of strength to his family.”

While speaking to CBS Sports, Raphinha admitted that it was ‘difficult’ to play football under the circumstances.

Raphinha’s words were translated by presenter Kate Scott, who said: “So Raphinha said it was difficult to play football under circumstances like this. He woke up this morning and spoke to his wife after he saw the news.

“Just didn’t really feel good during the day because we’re talking about somebody who was a colleague in the profession of football, and it could happen to anybody on the field.

“He is the same age as Raphinha, so maybe for that reason it affected him more, but it’s been a difficult day and difficult to deal with football on a day like this.” Watch the video below.

Following his emotional tribute, Raphinha was applauded by the likes of Thierry Henry, Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards.

Reacting on social media, one fan said: “Class from Raphinha.”

Another tweeted: “Class act on and off the pitch.”

A third fan added: “Class goes far beyond football. Raphinha keeps reminding us that behind the world-class player is an even greater human being.”

Someone else wrote: “Our captain rules!”

A fifth commented: “Football takes a back seat on days like this. Classy and compassionate words from Raphinha reminding us all what truly matters. Rest in peace, Jesus de Miguel. Deepest condolences to his family and loved ones.”