Former Newcastle United goalkeeper Pavel Srníček collapsed while wearing a club jacket, his brother has revealed.
It is a year to the day since Srníček collapsed while out jogging in Ostrava and reflecting on his brother’s death Milan Srnicek has spoken about the moment someone told him about what happened.
“My friend called me and told me that ‘Somebody in a Newcastle jacket is lying on the ground’ so I ran there,” he told the Sun.
“Pavel was hard to recognise. He fell on the ground and his face was covered with blood. It was really bad.”
Srníček, who was a vital part of Kevin Keegan’s Entertainers, had been on Tyneside just weeks before his death. After collapsing the 47-year-old was placed in an induced coma but died nine days later.
Milan added: “Even before the Christmas Eve I knew that Pavel’s chances were about two percent. The hope was too little and it had an influence on Christmas. It seemed that there was no way back for Pavel.”
It was later revealed that Srnicek – who made more than 150 appearances for the Magpies – had a hidden heart condition. Milan visited the North East back in October to take part in a charity game organised by Alan Shearer where he came on as a second half subsitute in a heart-wrenching tribute to his brother.
