Should footballers face criminal charges for on-field collisions?

• Tenerife striker Jesús de Miguel dies following a collision with Andorra goalkeeper Jesús Owono.

• The incident revives memories of Cristiano Junior's death after his collision with Subrata Pal in 2004.

• Former Indian goalkeepers differ on whether exceptional on-field incidents should invite criminal liability.

The death of Tenerife striker Jesús de Miguel following an on-field collision in a Spanish second-division match earlier this week may have reopened an old wound for Indian football fans. The reference is to the clash between Mohun Bagan goalkeeper Subrata Pal and Dempo's Cristiano Junior during a Federation Cup match in December 2004, which eventually resulted in the Brazilian professional's death.

More than 22 years have passed, but Pal, now retired and serving as director of national teams at the All India Football Federation (AIFF), still shies away from the subject. Jesús Owono, the young Equatorial Guinea international goalkeeper playing for FC Andorra and now at the centre of the controversy, is enduring the "most difficult hours" of his life, even as both his club and national federation have rallied behind him. An initial pathology report has attributed de Miguel's death to 'accidental chest trauma' following the mid-game collision.

A goalkeeper rushing out of his area to thwart an opponent in a one-to-one situation and prevent what appears to be a certain goal is a familiar sight in football. Yet, as this incident has once again demonstrated, such challenges can be fraught with danger. While the tragedy has cast a pall of gloom over Spanish football, police have confirmed that an investigation into possible involuntary manslaughter has been opened, in keeping with the country's legal procedures governing deaths from non-natural causes. The challenge took place near the centre circle.

A devastating incident by any measure, but no footballer sets out to cause such an outcome for an opponent, even with the most cynical of tackles. The Daily Telegraph of the UK has stirred up an extremely pertinent debate involving the complex moral and legal question of whether sportspersons should face criminal charges for incidents on the field of play. 

The report raises important questions about whether it is time to reconsider the extent to which the field of play can offer protection from normal criminal processes. To what extent should even fatal risks be considered part and parcel of high-speed contact sport? And what duty of care do participants owe one another while competing, often for millions of pounds, in what can sometimes feel like a win-at-all-costs environment?

Weighing in on the subject, former India captain Bhaskar Ganguly, one of the stalwarts to have guarded the Indian goal, believes that such incidents, however unfortunate, need to be treated as accidents.

Speaking to National Herald, Ganguly said: "From a goalkeeper's point of view, his sole objective at such a juncture is to save a potential goal, and he is ready to go all out. In my long career, there have been times when I have been badly hit on the chest while trying to save the situation. Fortunately, I am still here. For all you know, the Andorra goalkeeper could have been at the receiving end that day."

Ganguly believes that any suggestion of criminalising such incidents would amount to an overreaction. "In the Indian context, the memory of Subrata-Junior is still vivid and horrifying. I understand that the goalkeeper is under the spotlight here, but there have been so many incidents of hard tackles that have ended careers. How can you guard against them?" he asked.

However, Brahmanand Sankhwalkar, another goalkeeping stalwart of the 1980s and a contemporary of Ganguly, believes that every such extreme case should be examined on its merits before deciding whether criminal charges are warranted. "I have seen the video and have my doubts about whether the Andorra goalkeeper was really going for the ball. He went full blast into De Miguel, virtually near the centre circle. A look at the incident from other possible angles could have helped arrive at a conclusion," said the Padma Shri awardee, who was synonymous with Salgaocar FC of Goa.

While football remains in collective mourning, life goes on. Such incidents are undoubtedly freak occurrences, and it may therefore be too early to draw firm conclusions from de Miguel's case. The increasingly prominent role of goalkeepers as sweepers, often venturing far beyond their penalty areas, has also come under discussion, with questions being raised about whether some adjustments to the rules might be warranted.

While Spanish police have opened an investigation into possible involuntary manslaughter following the Tenerife striker's death, José Luis Sánchez-Jáuregui, the chief prosecutor in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, has already told Spanish news agency EFE that he considers the prospect of criminal proceedings extremely unlikely.

Should sportspersons, then, be liable to criminal charges for incidents on the field of play? There may be a case for it, but only in truly exceptional circumstances.