While the soccer world is engrossed with the Euros and the Copa America, some unfortunate news has emerged from Montenegro. Championship club Millwall has confirmed that their goalkeeper Matija Sarkic has passed away at the of 26. Having started his senior career with Aston Villa, Sarkic had a flurry of loan moves before becoming a vital part of Millwall. But, what happened to the soccer star who was in peak health and played 32 matches in the 2023-24 season?

As per a BBC report, Matija Sarkic collapsed at an apartment in Budva on Saturday morning. The Montenegro FA in their statement said that he “died suddenly.” The FA added that the late goalkeeper was a “beloved member” of the squad and an ever-smiling guy. Their statement read, “Our thoughts and condolences are with his family and friends, as well as everybody at the club and the Montenegro national team at this very sad time.” On the other hand, Millwall, too expressed their condolences. The club said, “Everyone at the club sends their love and condolences to Matija’s family and friends at this immensely sad time.”

Matija Sarkic’s demise is quite hard to accept, considering how active he was recently. In fact, the 26-year-old recently played in the International friendly against Belgium on June 5th. In the said game, Belgium won 2-0 thanks to goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Leandro Trossard. Notably, he was not even on the bench in the following Euro qualifier game against Georgia.

While fellow professionals and fans are in shock over the news, tributes are pouring in from all corners for Matija Sarkic. Hence, it’s only right that we cherish the career of one of Millwall’s finest.

A look back at Matija Sarkic’s career over the years

Matija Sarkic made his foray into professional soccer by joining the Belgian club Anderlecht’s academy before moving to Aston Villa. His period at Villa wasn’t the most memorable, as Sarkic was floating from club to club. He soon joined Wigan Atletic on loan, while in 2018/19 he was loaned to Stratford Town. His final loan spell while at Villa Park was with Scottish club Livingston. Following this, he was transferred to Wolves.

Even at Wolves, Matija Sarkic found it hard to break into the first team. The player was unable to don the Wolves’ first-team jersey and had to spend time on loan with the likes of Shrewsbury Town, Birmingham City, and Stoke City. Later, Millwall was interested in his services and he joined the Championship club for an undisclosed fee. Millwall looked like the club where his career would blossom to the next level. While the club finished 13th in the Championship, Sarkic’s efforts ensured that it wasn’t lower. Expectations were high on the Montenegro man for next season, yet fate had a cruel twist of its own.