Millwall goalkeeper Matija Sarkic dies aged 26 after ‘falling ill’ in apartment in Montenegro

Millwall Football Club and Montenegro goalkeeper Matija Sarkic has died. The 26-year-old fell ill this morning (Saturday, June 15) in an apartment in the Montenegrin city of Budva.

The exact cause of his death has not yet been announced. In a statement, Millwall FC said: “Millwall Football Club is completely devastated to announce that Matija Sarkic has passed away at the age of 26.

“Everyone at the club sends their love and condolences to Matija’s family and friends at this extremely sad time. The club will make no further comment at this time and ask that the privacy of Matija’s family be respected.”

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Born in Grimsby, Sarkic began his career in Anderlecht’s academy in Belgium before joining Aston Villa from Birmingham in 2015. He then had loan spells at Wigan, Stratford, Havant and Waterlooville and Livingston before moving to Wolves in 2020.

He played 60 games on loan at Shrewsbury, Birmingham and Stoke before joining the south London outfit last August, where he made 33 appearances. He made his debut for Montenegro against Belarus in 2019 and was on international duty last week for a friendly against Belgium.

‘Sudden death’

The Football Association of Montenegro said in a statement that Sarkic “died suddenly” on Saturday morning. “A beloved member of the Brave Falcons, a guy with an eternal smile, played for our ‘A’ team in nine games where he showed how much he means to this team,” the statement added.

“Together with his twin brother Oliver, he passed all the junior categories of the Montenegrin national team. In the jersey of that iconic London club (Millwall), he left his mark, which was yet to become part of a bigger and more beautiful story.

“The untimely death stopped that and caused great pain to the Sarkic family. The Football Association of Montenegro expresses its sincere condolences to the Sarkic family.”

Tributes have also been paid by Sarkic’s former clubs, with Villa saying on X: “Everyone at Aston Villa is deeply saddened by the news of the passing of our former goalkeeper Matija Sarkic. Matija joined our Academy in 2015 and spent five years with the club, during which time he made his full international debut for Montenegro, before leaving in the summer of 2020. The thoughts and condolences of everyone at the club are with the family and his friends at this incredibly sad time.”

Birmingham, where Sarkic made 23 appearances on loan in the 2021-22 season, told X: “Everyone at Birmingham City is shocked and saddened to learn that our former goalkeeper Matija Sarkic has passed away aged 26 years. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and all who knew him.”

Tribute from the FA

The Football Association added: “We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Millwall goalkeeper Matija Sarkic. Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and friends, as well as everyone at the club and the Montenegro national team at this very sad time.”

Stoke, the Professional Footballers’ Association and the English Football League also offered their condolences to Sarkic’s family and friends.

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