- Millwall goalkeeper Matija Sarkic died on Saturday at the age of 26 after falling ill
- Former Blackpool star Oliver Sarkic shared a tribute to his brother on social media
Tributes poured in on social media following the untimely death of Millwall goalkeeper Matija Sarkic, aged just 26.
Sarkic, born in Grimsby to a Montenegrin father and English mother, was on international duty when he collapsed after falling ill before passing away on Saturday morning.
Sarkic’s twin brother Oliver played alongside him in Anderlecht’s youth academy, and Matija attended his wedding a week ago.
Following Matija’s death, Oliver shared a photo of the brothers sharing a moment together with a heart emoji on his Instagram Story.
Stan Collymore wrote on
Tributes have been paid to Matija Sarkic after the Millwall goalkeeper died aged 26
Matija’s twin brother, former Blackpool midfielder Oliver, shared a photo of the pair together on his social media
The brothers started their football career together in the academy of the Belgian club Anderlecht
‘A young man with everything in front of him puts everything into perspective. I send my sincere condolences to his family.”
An announcement on Milwall’s official website read: ‘Millwall Football Club is completely devastated to announce that Matija Sarkic has passed away at the age of 26.
‘Sarkic, The Lions’ number one goalkeeper, has made 33 appearances for the club since joining from Wolverhampton Wanderers in August 2023.
‘As an international from Montenegro, Matija proudly represented his country on numerous occasions.
“Everyone at the club sends their love and condolences to Matija’s family and friends at this extremely sad time.
“The club wishes to make no further comment at this time and asks that the privacy of Matija’s family is respected,” the statement concluded.
Sarkic’s former club Aston Villa wrote on social media: ‘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 at 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 go out to his family and friends at this incredibly sad time.
After starting his career at Anderlecht, Sarkic first signed professionally with Villa in 2017.
Sarkic’s former clubs paid tribute to the goalkeeper following his tragic death
It was during his time in the West Midlands that Sarkic would get his first taste of senior football with loan spells at Wigan, Stratford Town, Havant & Waterlooville and Livingston.
Sarkic moved to Wolves in 2020 but again spent much of his time on loan, enjoying spells at Shrewsbury, Birmingham and Stoke before permanently joining Millwall last summer.
The goalkeeper had played the full 90 minutes of Montenegro’s friendly against Belgium last week and was named man of the match for his performance in the 2-0 defeat to Belgium.