Born in
Kljajićevo, Kartalija made his senior debuts with
Vrbas, spending three seasons at the club (1985–1988), before transferring to
Vojvodina. He was a regular member of the team that won the
1988–89 Yugoslav First League. In the summer of 1991, Kartalija moved abroad to Austria and signed with
Wiener Sport-Club. He later switched to
LASK Linz in the 1993 winter transfer window, spending the following four and a half years at the club. During this period, Kartalija acquired Austrian citizenship and started representing the country. He earned four caps for the national team between 1996 and 1997. In the 1997–98 season, Kartalija played for French club
Nice, before returning to Austria and joining
Admira Wacker Mödling. He subsequently joined Union Weisskirchen in January 1999. After spending three and a half years at the club, Kartalija switched to Union Gunskirchen in July 2002. He later joined Asten and stayed there for five seasons (2003–2008). Afterwards, Kartalija spent three years with St. Valentin from 2008 to 2011, while also serving as player-manager in the last two seasons. ==Career statistics==