It was a night Hajduk fans will remember forever.
For someone that has been following Hajduk since I was a little girl - listening to the matches from whatever Croatian radio station my father could find in my kitchen in California - today, my heart is full.
It was an atmosphere unlike any other at Poljud last night. Hajduk fans packed into the stands, jumped to their feet, and cheered for the boys in white on our home turf for the first time in 75 days. This most certainly had an impact on the Hajduk team last night, and the outcome was beautiful.
Hajduk won their fifth consecutive European victory in style before 30,204 spectators who poured their heart and soul into the stadium.
Even though Hajduk coach Joan Carrillo did not have his full squad available, an injured Fran Tudor was replaced by Josip Juranović and Zvonimir Kožulj filled the boots of Josip Radosević without a problem.
Plenty of opportunities for Hajduk in the first half by Kožulj and Vlašić left supporters clinching to the edge of their seats, but a 0:0 draw at the end of the half would continue to leave the stadium in a bundle of nerves.
The whistle to start the second half came with hope, and that is exactly what 30,000 fans at Poljud received. Hajduk sent Brondby back to Denmark with two goals by the hero Ante Erceg in the 59th and 63rd minute, sending the stadium into an uproar. A score of 2:0 would be enough to advance Hajduk into the Europa League playoffs, and we knew Hajduk needed to hang on for dear life to ensure the Danes would not see the back of the net.
Hajduk shipped Brondby back to Denmark with two goals by the hero Ante Erceg in the 59th and 63rd minute, sending the stadium into an absolute uproar. A score of 2:0 would be enough to advance Hajduk into the Europa League playoffs, and we knew Hajduk needed to hang on for dear life to ensure the Danes would not see the back of the net.
While Brondby continued to press throughout the rest of the second half, Hajduk remained the better team. Before we knew it, Torcida led the crowd into “Večeras je naša fešta” until the final whistle blew. Hajduk would advance to the Europa League playoffs.
Before the start of the match, the home fans even had the opportunity to greet the Croatian men’s water polo team who became World Champions last week after defeating Hungary in the finals of the Fina World Championships in Budapest. A good luck charm, perhaps?
Celebrations were had all over Split, and especially by Torcida fans on Matejuška who sang their love for Hajduk until the early morning hours.
What a night.
Hajduk will know their Europa League opponent today at 13:00 when the draw begins. Potential rivals in the next round could be Zenit, Ajax, Dynamo Kyiv, Athletic Bilbao, Fenerbahce, Milan, Plzen, Red Bull Salzburg, Club Bruges, PAOK, Ludogorets, Krasnodar, Bate Borisov, Everton, Legia, Marseille, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Austria Vienna, Midtjylland, Partizan, Panathinaikos or Braga.
Bravo, Hajduk!
