March 11, 2019 - The 24th round of the Croatian First League was held from March 8 to 10, 2019. The weekend saw Rudeš win their first game this season, the highly anticipated derby between Dinamo and Rijeka, and Hajduk inch closer to the top 4. 

March 4, 2019 - The Croatian First League’s 23rd round saw Hajduk, Rijeka and Gorica win, while Dinamo and Osijek pulled draws over the weekend. 

February 25, 2019 - The 22nd round of the Croatian First League was held from February 22 to 24, 2019, and featured the highly anticipated derby between Dinamo and Osijek. 

While the bura wind ripped through Croatia’s coast this week, there was no stopping the Croatian First League, which was held despite the blustery winds. The weekend saw some exciting matchups, like Hajduk and Gorica who are neck-and-neck on the table, Dinamo and Osijek who were first and second, and Belupo and Inter in 7th and 8th. 

Without further ado, here is our Croatian First League round 22 recap. 

Rudeš v. Rijeka (2:4)

Rudeš and Rijeka opened the 22nd round on Friday, February 22, 2019, at Kranjčevićeva street stadium in front of 279 fans. 

While Rudeš was the first to score with a penalty by Vuco in the 15th minute, Rijeka did not take long to come back. Gorgan nailed a penalty in the 41st minute, and just three minutes later, Acosty scored for 1:2 at the half.

In the second half, Gorgan hit another goal for 1:3 in the 60th minute and Puljić scored to make it 1:4 for the visiting team. Rudeš did come back to get one more goal after Juranović scored in the 81st. The game ended at 2:4. 

Rudeš remains in the last place on the table with 4 points, while Rijeka has now moved into second place with 41 points. 

Slaven Belupo v. Inter Zaprešić (0:1)

Belupo and Inter met in Koprivnica on Saturday, February 23, 2019, in front of 513 fans. 

The first half was quiet and went without goals - and the second half was not much more exciting. Serderov scored for Inter in the 68th minute, which is how the game ended. 

Belupo is currently in 7th place with 21 points, while Inter is in 8th with 21. 

Hajduk v. Gorica (0:0)

Hajduk and Gorica met at Poljud stadium in front of 6,708 fans on Saturday, February 23, 2019. 

As both teams had to fight against the brutal bura in addition to one another, not much could be accomplished. The game ended without goals. 

Hajduk is currently in 6th place with 31 points, while Gorica is in 5th place with 32. 

Istria 1961 v. Lokomotiva Zagreb (0:0)

Istria and Lokomotiva met in Pula on Sunday, February 24, 2019, in front of 816 fans. 

It was another scoreless game which did not see much excitement from either team. The game ended 0:0. 

Istria is currently in 9th place with 17 points, while Lokomotiva is in 4th with 36. 

Dinamo v Osijek (3:0)

Dinamo and Osijek closed out the 22nd round with the highly anticipated derby at Maksimir stadium on Sunday, February 24, 2019, in front of 4,304 fans. 

Coming off a high after advancing into the last 16 of the Europa League, Dinamo had no intention of slowing down. Andrić scored first for Dinamo in the 8th minute to make it 1:0, and Atiemwen sacred for 2:0 in the 21st minute. 

Rrahmani scored in the 60th minute for 3:0 to secure the Dinamo blowout over the Osijek club. 

Dinamo remains in the first place with 57 points, while Osijek has now fallen to third place with 40 points. 

You can see the Croatian First League table here. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

February 11, 2019 - The 20th round of the Croatian First League began on February 8th with Rudeš and Osijek and ended on February 10th with Hajduk and Lokomotiva. 

February 4, 2019 - The 19th round of the Croatian First League returned over the weekend with a big result for Hajduk Split. 

After a long winter break, the Croatian First League (HNL) returned to Croatia’s stadiums and television screens around the country. After missing our favorite Croatian clubs play in league games since the middle of December, this comeback was more than welcomed. 

The 19th round already saw derbies and upsets, like Hajduk overcoming Osijek away at City Garden Stadium, promising better beginnings for the team and fans. Could this be a Hajduk revival? 

We also saw an upset for Rijeka, who lost to former Second-League club Gorica at home. A spring season opener they might wish to forget. 

Without further ado, here is our 19th round recap for the Croatian First League, which was played from February 1 to 3, 2019. 

Lokomotiva Zagreb v. Inter Zaprešić (2:0)

To kick off the second part of the season, Lokomotiva and Inter met on Friday, February 1, 2019, at Kranjčevićeva Street Stadium. 

While the first half went without goals, the second half didn’t see the first goal of the game until the 81st minute when Uzuni scored for Lokomotiva (1:0). Twelve minutes later, two minutes into extra time, Ivanušec knocked a penalty into the back of the net to secure the Lokomotiva win. 

Lokomotiva is currently in third place on the table with 34 points while Inter is in 8th with 17. 

Dinamo Zagreb v. Rudeš (7:2)

Croatian champion Dinamo met Rudeš on Saturday, February 2, 2019, at Maksimir stadium. 

The game saw goals, and quite a few of them early on - with Hajrović (5, 9), Petković (19), and Gojak (40) scoring in the first half for Dinamo. Rudeš got in one goal by Štrkalj in the 23rd for 4:1 at the half. 

The second half started with more goals for Dinamo, as Orišić scored three times, in the 56th, 60th, and 65th. Štrkalj scored again for Rudeš, and the game ended 7:2. 

Dinamo is currently in first place with 48 points while Rudeš is in last with 3. 

Istra 1961 v. Slaven Belupo (1:1)

Istra and Slaven Belupo met at Aldo Drosina Stadium in Pula on Saturday, February 2, 2019. 

A rather quiet game that went without goals in the first half, N’Di scored for Istra first in the 64th minute, while Belupo was quick to equalize less than 10 minutes later with a goal by Krstanović for 1:1. 

Istra is currently in 9th place with 16 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 18.

Osijek v. Hajduk (0:1)

Osijek and Hajduk met for the highly anticipated derby on Sunday, February 3, 2019, at City Garden Stadium. 

The two rivals met in the pouring rain, which didn’t help any conditions on the pitch. The first half went without goals, though it was Hajduk’s Caktaš to score 4 minutes into the second half for 0:1. The Split club managed to hold onto their lead to kick off the second part of the season with a win, and high morale. 

Osijek is currently in 2nd place with 34 points, while Hajduk is in 6th with 26. 

Rijeka v. Gorica (1:3)

Rijeka and Gorica met at Rujevica to close out the 19th round on Sunday, February 3, 2019. 

While it was Rijeka’s Acosty to kick off the scoring of the game for 1:0 six minutes in, Gorica was given a penalty in the 30th to equalize (1:1). 

Gorica’s Dvorneković scored in the 57th minute to give the away team the lead, and Maloča scored in the 87th to secure Gorica’s win. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 34 points while Gorica is in 5th with 30. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. See the Croatian First League table. 

From next season, VAR (Video Assistant Referee) will be used in the Croatian First League, while some games could even see the video technology this season.

The 15th round of the Croatian First League was played from November 23 to 25, 2018, which included the highly anticipated derby between Rijeka and Dinamo. 

The 13th round of the Croatian First League was held from November 3 to 5, 2018, which saw an exciting derby for Dinamo against Osijek. 

The 12th round of the Croatian First League (HNL) was played from October 26 to 28, 2018. Dinamo Zagreb still leads the pack. 

At the beginning of last season, the Croatian Football League led a fierce fight to be 15th place in the ranking of the best European leagues - Rijeka was in the playoffs of the Champions League, and Dinamo Zagreb, Hajduk Split, and Osijek in the playoffs of the Europa League. The start of the current European season, however, has been completely the opposite - and Croatian football has experienced a great downfall, reports Index.hr on October 27, 2018.