Reyes' car crashed due to speeding, says Navarro

Spains general director of traffic on Tuesday confirmed that former Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid football star Jose Antonio Reyes, 35, and his cousin died in a car accident on Saturday due to speeding.

Pere Navarro, head of Spain's Traffic agency, told reporters excessive speeding was the reason why the car went off the road and burst into flames. The accident happened near Reyes' hometown Utrera in the southern Spanish province of Seville.

Two of his relatives were with him in the car. While one of them died in the accident, the other was injured critically, according to Efe news.

Sources close to the investigation said the driver was going over 200 km per hour. Navarro said Reyes' case was not rare as 411 lives have been lost in crashes this year.

"Speeding is definitely what caused the crash but an investigation is still underway to gather details," he said.

He said driving at 200 km plus speed was a crime, and "buying a car that can go over 200 km/h can only land you in jail."

"We have been blaming traffic accidents on drivers for 50 years because sometimes they speed, drink or get distracted, and maybe if we had designed a system of thinking whereby drivers sometimes drink, speed or get distracted, we would have avoided many accidents," he said.

On Monday, thousands of people attended Reyes' funeral. The coffin was covered with the flag of Sevilla FC, the club where he grew up and where he made his debut as a pro, as well as Spain's national flag.

Two days of mourning were declared after the death of Reyes, who made 21 appearances with the Spanish national team and also played for several European clubs, including Arsenal and Benfica.

Reyes was playing for Spanish second-tier side Extremadura UD, which he had joined earlier in the year.

( With inputs from IANS )