PHIL O’DONNELL, the captain of Motherwell football club, the Scottish Premier League side, died last night after collapsing during a match at his home ground.

The 35-year-old fell to the ground as he was about to be substituted near the end of Motherwell’s 5-3 victory over Dundee United. The former Celtic and Sheffield Wednesday player, who is believed to have suffered a seizure, was treated on the field at Fir Park, in the town south of Glasgow, for about five minutes before being taken to Wishaw general hospital. He was pronounced dead a short time later.

“This is an unspeakable tragedy for Phil’s family,” said John Boyle, the Motherwell owner. “At this stage we do not know the exact cause of death. Everyone is shocked to the core and we are sure that everyone involved in Scottish football will feel the same. Phil was not only an inspirational player but an inspirational person.”

Mark McGhee, the manager, said all staff and players at the club felt devastated for O’Donnell’s wife and four children: “That’s what we are all feeling tonight; nothing else matters.”

O’Donnell began his career at Motherwell in the early 1990s, scoring at the age of just 18 in the side’s 4-3 victory in the 1991 Scottish Cup final. During his first spell there he earned his only cap for Scotland. In 1994 he was headhunted by Celtic for a fee of £1.75m - still the most paid for a Motherwell player.

After an injury-plagued four years at Sheffield Wednesday he rejoined Motherwell in 2004, where his appearances alongside his nephew in the claret and amber strip earned him the nickname “Uncle Phil”.

Gordon Smith, chief executive of the Scottish Football Association, said: “Phil was not just a wonderful footballer; he was a great human being.”