Hajduk Split’s nightmare form in the run home for their first taste of HNL glory in two decades was amplified after 3-1 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb at Stadion Poljud.
Pitch-invading black cats, goalkeeping errors, goal-line clearances and controversial calls saw Hajduk extend their five-game winless streak as Rijeka and Dinamo charge ahead in an all-action title race.
Elsewhere, a young Croatian star breaks a generational Golden Boot drought and a Vatreni star lifts the Bundesliga plate for a fifth consecutive season.
Vjesnik’s Jake Holub wraps up the week in national and international football, through a Croatian lens, covering Aussie-Croats, Croats in Europe and the HNL.
A-League: Young Gun rewarded with Golden Boot
With the A-League Men‘s regular season coming to a close, the thrilling Golden Boot race was won by a 20-year-old duo: Adrian Segečić and Archie Goodwin.
Becoming the first Croat to win the Golden Boot in Australia since the NSL era, Segečić’s achievement becomes all the more impressive when considering his primary position as a winger or midfielder.
Segečić also received limited game time at points during the season, often coming off the bench as an impact player. The youngster finished the season averaging a goal in every 104 minutes of action in the league, the best record in the league.
Coming off contract in the off-season, Sydney FC head coach Ufuk Talay has confirmed Segečić “will definitely take that chance (to move overseas) if it does show itself“
Scoring a goal and an assist in Western United’s impressive 4-2 win over Premiers Auckland FC, Noah Botić took his goal tally to 12 in the league.
Narrowly missing out on the Golden Boot, Botić will look ahead to a home elimination final at Ironbark Fields against Adelaide United this coming Friday night.
Also finishing just behind Segečić on 12 goals, Nicolas Milanović also helped his team secure a home elimination final thanks to a 2-1 win over Macarthur FC, meaning his Western Sydney Wanderers will face Melbourne Victory at CommBank Stadium on Saturday night.
Scoring the Bulls’ only goal in the same game, Marin Jakoliš joined an exclusive club that has recorded double digits in both goals and assists in a single A-League Men’s season, alongside greats Aaron Mooy, Marco Rojas and Craig Goodwin.
Despite leading Brisbane Roar to three wins in their last four outings, head coach Ruben Zadkovich was announced to have mutually parted ways with the club.
In the A-League Women‘s, Croatian international midfielder Bianca Galić played all 90 minutes in the Central Coast Mariners’ 2-2 draw in the first leg of their semi-final tie against the invincible Melbourne City, set to take on the Citizens in the second leg on Sunday.
Europe: Big performances with Champions crowned
While unable to beat RB Leipzig earlier in the weekend, dropped points by the trailing Bayer Leverkusen officially confirmed that Josip Stanišić and Gabriel Vidović‘s Bayern Münich are the 2024/25 Bundesliga Champions.
Raring to lift the Meisterschale at Allianz Arena when they face Borussia Mönchengladbach on Sunday, Stanišić notably claimed his fifth consecutive Bundesliga title, after winning the league while on loan with Bayer Leverkusen last season.
Across the border, the race for the Eredivisie has heated up between Josip Šutalo‘s Ajax and Ivan Perišić‘s PSV.
While the performances of Šutalo were acknowledged with his inclusion in the Eredivisie’s team of the month, Ajax’s loss to FC Utrecht and draw with Sparta Rotterdam have begun to put their title hopes in jeopardy.
Trailing four points behind Ajax with three rounds remaining, PSV’s four-game winning streak was extended with the help of Perišić’s hat-trick against Fortuna Sittard.
Scoring 14 goals in all competitions this season, the 36-year-old’s tally is his highest-ever since his 2010/11 campaign with Club Brugge.
Keeping a clean sheet in his side’s 4-0 victory over Aris Limassol, goalkeeper Ivica Ivušić helped Pafos FC win their first-ever Cypriot First Divison Championship.
While no longer able lift the Premier League title due to the excellence of Liverpool, Manchester City’s Vatreni duo Joško Gvardiol and Mateo Kovačić helped their side take a big step in securing Champions League qualification after starting in Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Wolves.
Sat in 3rd place, City have the realistic possibility to overtake Arsenal in second place while having the possibility to win silverware with their FA Cup Final against Crystal Palace two weeks away.
Here are some other performances from Croats in Europe worth noting:
- Andrej Kramarić provided a hat-trick of assists in Hoffenheim’s 4-4 draw with Borussia Mönchengladbach.
- Matija Frigan netted a ‘Messi-esque‘ goal in Westerlo’s 4-2 win over Dender.
- Nikola Vlašić played the full 90 minutes and scored in Torino’s 1-1 draw with Venezia.
- Mario Pašalić provided an assist off the bench in Atalanta’s 4-0 win over Monza, a big step in securing Champions League football for his side.
HNL: Hajduk defeated by flying Dinamo
Hosting Dinamo Zagreb in a highly anticipated Eternal Derby clash, the pressure was on Hajduk Split to turn around their horrid form.
Comfortably leading ahead of Dinamo weeks ago in the race for HNL glory, Hajduk’s playing group had the weight of a 20-year Championship drought on their backs.
While the first half remained quiet as both sides felt their way into the game, a poor clearance and missed save by Hajduk keeper Ivan Lučić saw Dinamo take the lead in the 56th minute through Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel’s effort.
Super captain Marko Livaja responded just minutes later for Hajduk, scoring an excellent goal as he extended his lead on the HNL’s Golden Boot race.
However, Dinamo’s top scorer Sandro Kulenović pulled the visitors back ahead in the 64th minute with a towering header from Marko Pjaca‘s cross.
While at 2-1, Dinamo defender Kévin Théophile-Catherine risked committing a late penalty after clumsily barging into a Hajduk attacker in the box, but assistance from VAR ruled the offence to not be worthy of a spot kick.
As Hajudk desperately searched for an equaliser, Dinamo exploited the space to counter-attack and Petar Sučić confirmed the three points for his side with a goal in the dying minutes.
Taking just two points in their last five outings, compared to 12 in five for Dinamo, Hajduk have now fallen to third in the league inexplicably.
Head coach Gennaro Gattuso has since been rumoured to leave the club at the end of the season, with growing frustration and tension surrounding the club.
The following game day, Rijeka held onto an important 2-1 win over Gorica, helped by Niko Janković‘s stunning free-kick to open the scoring just nine minutes into the game.
As such, Rijeka remain on top of the league on 59 points, meanwhile Dinamo jump to second with 58 points, ahead of Hajduk on 56 points.
Just three rounds remain in an all-time HNL title race, while league leaders Rijeka also look to balance their Croatia Cup Final commitments against Slaven Belupo amid their league run home.