March 16, 2021 - The latest football news in Croatia as Zoran Mamić resigns as Dinamo coach after the verdict was confirmed in the 'Mamić trial' on Monday.

On Monday, the Supreme Court confirmed the verdict against Zdravko and Zoran Mamić and former Dinamo director Damir Vrbanović.

Zdravko Mamić has now been sentenced to six and a half years in prison, and his brother Zoran Mamić, Dinamo's coach until last night, was sentenced to four years eight months in prison by the decision of the Supreme Court. Damir Vrbanović was sentenced to three years in prison.

After the verdict was announced, the question arose of whether Zoran Mamić could remain the coach of Dinamo. According to the letter of the law, he must leave the bench of the Croatian champion immediately. 

A few hours after the verdict was announced, the Dinamo coach also spoke.

"Although I do not feel guilty, as I announced earlier, if the verdict is final, I accept it as such and resign from the position of the GNK Dinamo head coach and sports director. I wish the club a lot of luck and sporting success in its future work," Mamić said.

At Monday's session of the GNK Dinamo Management Board, the current head coach and sports director's resignation was accepted. Damir Krznar was appointed to the head coach of Dinamo's first team, and will also serve as the club's sports director.

If Mamić had not resigned himself, Dinamo would have had to terminate his contract under the Sports Act, which states that no person who has been sentenced to more than six months can lead or organize sports competitions or perform professional sports activities.

Dinamo will play the return match of the Europa League round of 16 against Tottenham Hotspur in three days. In the Croatian championship, they hold first place with two points more and a game less than Osijek in second. 

Zoran Mamić sat on the Dinamo bench on two occasions, winning four championship titles and two Cups.

Source: Index.hr

You can read more about the Supreme Court verdict HERE. 

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

March 15, 2021 - The 25th round of the Croatian First League was held from March 12 to 14, 2021. This round saw Hajduk and Gorica draw, while Dinamo and Osijek recorded blowout victories against Varazdin and Sibenik. 

Rijeka v. Slaven Belupo (1:1)

Rijeka and Slaven Belupo opened the 25th round on Friday, March 12, 2021, at Rujevica Stadium in Rijeka. 

While the first half ended without goals, Andrijasevic gave Rijeka the lead in the 52nd minute, though van Bruggen scored the equalizer for Belupo with 15 minutes to go for the 1:1 result. 

Rijeka is currently in 5th place with 33 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 23. 

Lokomotiva v. Istra 1961 (0:1) 

Lokomotiva and Istra met on Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Zagreb. 

Navarro scored the only goal of the match in the 38th minute for 0:1 Istra. Simic scored from offside for Lokomotiva at the start of the second half which was called back thanks to VAR. 

Lokomotiva is currently in the last place with 20 points, while Istra is in 8th with 23. 

Gorica v. Hajduk (1:1)

Gorica and Hajduk met in Velika Gorica on Saturday, March 13, 2021. 

Hajduk's Mujakic scored an own goal for Gorica in the 6th minute, giving the home team the early lead. Hajduk's Atanasov came back to equalize for Hajduk for 1:1 at the half. Neither team could score in the second half. 

Gorica is currently in 3rd place with 48 points, while Hajduk has moved to 4th place with 33. 

Varazdin v. Dinamo (0:5)

Varazdin and Dinamo met in Varazdin on Sunday, March 14, 2021. 

Atiemwen opened the scoring spree for Dinamo with a goal in the 7th minute. Misic and Gavanovic followed with goals in the 16th and 24th minutes, making it 0:3 for Dinamo at the half. 

Two goals by Orsic in the 70th and 78th minute made it 0:5, which was the final score of the game. 

Varazdin is currently in 9th place with 22 points, while Dinamo is in first place with 57. 

Sibenik v. Osijek (0:4)

Sibenik and Osijek closed out the 25th round on Sunday, March 14, 2021, in Sibenik. 

Kleinheisler scored the first goal for Osijek in the 13th minute for 0:1. Mierez and Santini increased Osijek's lead at the start of the second half for 0:3 in the 49th minute. Erceg scored Osijek's last goal for the 0:4 final score.

Sibenik is currently in 6th place with 26 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 55. 

You can see the full HNL table HERE.

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

March 11, 2021 - Tottenham tops Dinamo 2:0 in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 tonight in London.

The Croatian champion returned to Tottenham for the first time since 2008 when they lost 4:0 in Group D of the then Uefa Cup.

Jose Mourinho's side has been in great form lately with four consecutive championship victories and a 13:1 goal difference. Tottenham is now in the fight for the first four spots leading to the Champions League, which allowed Mourinho to rest some of his starters, even though Harry Kane and Heung-min Son began from the first minute on Thursday. Gareth Bale was on the bench.

Dinamo also came to London in great form and full of confidence after a great Europa League season thus far. Mamic's team finished the group stage undefeated and topped Krasnodar in the last 32. Zoran Mamić did not make significant changes to the starting 11.

Starting lineups

Tottenham: Lloris - Davies, Dier, Sanchez, Aurier - Ndombele, Alli, Sissoko - Son, Kane, Lamela

Dinamo: Livaković - Leovac, Theophile_Catherine, Lauritsen, Ristovski - Ivanušec, Ademi, Jakić, Majer - Oršić, Petković

Tottenham v Dinamo Recap

Dinamo entered the match with confidence, and even though Tottenham pressured Dinamo's defense more in the first 20 minutes, the Zagreb side held their own. 

That is, until the 25th minute, when Lamela danced through Dinamo's defense, hit the post, only for Kane to finish for 1:0 Tottenham. 

Tottenham ended the first half with 67% possession, though they had only two more shots than Dinamo (6/4), and Dinamo had more shots on goal (2/3). 

While Tottenham maintained their momentum at the start of the second half, Petković had Dinamo's best chance in the 59th minute, shooting just near post to keep Tottenham in the lead. 

Tottenham increased its lead in the 70th minute. Theophile-Catherine weakly cleared the ball out of the box to Kane who scored his second goal for 2:0. Dinamo was unable to come back. 

Dinamo and Tottenham will meet in the return match at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb on Thursday, March 18. 

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

March 8, 2021 - The 24th round of the Croatian First League was held from March 5 to 7, 2021. In this round, Dinamo tops Rijeka 2:0, and Osijek and Gorica draw at City Garden Stadium. 

Istra 1961 v. Sibenik (3:2)

Istra and Sibenik opened the 24th round on Friday, March 5, 2021, in Pula. 

Sahiti put Sibenik in the lead with one minute to go in the first half (0:1). Grzan scored a penalty for Istra 10 minutes later to equalize, and Ivancic put Istra in the lead two minutes after that for 2:1. Hara gave Istra the 3:1 lead in the 63rd minute, and Sibenik's Bulat scored for 3:2 in the 75th minute for the final result. 

Istra is currently in last place with 17 points, while Sibenik is in 6th place with 26. 

Slaven Belupo v. Lokomotiva (0:0)

Belupo and Lokomotiva met in Koprivnica on Saturday, March 6, 2021. 

Neither team was able to score, and the match ended at 0:0.

Belupo is currently in 7th place with 22 points, while Lokomotiva is in 9th with 20. 

Hajduk v. Varazdin (2:0)

Hajduk and Varazdin met on Saturday, March 6, 2021, at Poljud Stadium in Split. 

Colina opened the match with a goal for Hajduk in the 8th minute (1:0). An own goal by Memija just before the half made it 2:0. Hajduk's Fossati and Varazdin's Guera Djou were given their second yellows and sent off the pitch in a dramatic end to the match. 

Hajduk is currently in 4th place with 32 points, while Varazdin is in 8th with 22. 

Osijek v. Gorica (1:1)

Osijek and Gorica met on Sunday, March 7, 2021, at City Garden Stadium. 

While the first half went without goals, Dieye gave Gorica the 0:1 lead in the 55th minute. Osijek didn't equalize until the 88th minute when Bohar scored a penalty for 1:1.  

Osijek is currently in 2nd place with 52 points, while Gorica is in 3rd with 47. 

Dinamo v. Rijeka (2:0)

Dinamo and Rijeka closed out the 24th round on Sunday, March 7, 2021, at Maksimir Stadium.

Ivanusec scored Dinamo's first goal in the 27th minute for 1:0 at the half. Orsic increased Dinamo's lead in the 65th minute for 2:0, which was the final result. 

Dinamo is currently in 1st place with 54 points, while Rijeka dropped to 5th with 32. 

You can see the full HNL table HERE. 

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

March 3, 2021 - The first two rounds of the Croatian Cup quarterfinals were held on Wednesday. Rijeka and Dinamo are the first two Croatian clubs to secure their spot in the semifinals. 

The current Croatian Cup titleholders celebrated 2:1 on the road against Osijek in the first quarterfinal match of this year's Croatian Cup.

Rijeka's Robert Murić scored the leading goal in the 7th minute for 1:0. Osijek equalized in the 14th minute thanks to captain Mile Škorić. In the 35th minute, Rijeka goalkeeper Nevistić saved Mierez's penalty. The winning goal for Rijeka was scored again by Murić from a penalty kick in the 71st minute.

Slobodan Kadic

In his first game on the Rijeka bench, Goran Tomić came to victory and took the defending champions to the semifinals.

This was the first time Nenad Bjelica's Osijek were defeated at City Garden Stadium. The match at City Garden Stadium was reffed by Mario Zebec. 

Dinamo and Slaven Belupo met in the second quarterfinal match at 5 pm at Maksimir, only three days after Dinamo won against Belupo 3:0 at the same stadium. 

Dinamo coach Zoran Mamić rested goalkeeper Dominik Livaković and defender Rasmus Lauritsen this match, instead giving a chance to Mario Gavranović, Marko Tolić, and Lirim Kastrati. 

While the first half ended 0:0, a Dinamo penalty scored by Bruno Petkovic in the 70th minute helped the Zagreb club turn the game around. Captain Arijan Ademi scored eight minutes later for 2:0, which was the final score of the game. 

Recall, Gorica v Hajduk and Oriolik v Istra 1961 will play their quarterfinal round matches on March 16 and 17, 2021. Hajduk secured the last quarterfinal spot on Tuesday after beating Zagreb 3:0 at Veslačka Street Stadium in Zagreb.

The semi-final matches are scheduled for March 31, and the final will be played on May 19, 2021. 

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

March 1, 2021 - The 23rd round of the Croatian First League was held from February 26 to 28, 2021. In this round, Osijek comes back to beat Varazdin, and Hajduk records another win at Rujevica against Rijeka. 

Varazdin v. Osijek (2:3)

Varazdin and Osijek opened the 23rd round on Friday, February 26, 2021, in Varazdin. 

Peco scored the first goal of the match in the 16th minute for 1:0 Varazdin, which Herrera increased to 2:0 five minutes later. Varazdin could not hold onto their lead for long, with an Osijek penalty in the 52nd minute (Mierez) bringing them back in the game. Santini equalized for Osijek in the 68th minute, and Mierez scored again for the 2:3 win 10 minutes later. 

Varazdin is currently in 7th place with 22 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 51. 

Sibenik v. Lokomotiva (0:0)

Sibenik and Lokomotiva met on Saturday, February 27, 2021, in Sibenik. 

Neither team was able to score in the 0:0 draw. 

Sibenik is currently in 6th place with 26 points, while Lokomotiva is in 9th with 19. 

Rijeka v. Hajduk (0:1)

The thrilling Adriatic Derby between Rijeka and Hajduk was played on Saturday, February 27, 2021, at Rujevica Stadium. 

The only goal of the match came in the 72nd minute when Umut scored thanks to Livaja's debut assist for 0:1 Hajduk. Rijeka was awarded a penalty in the final seconds of the match (96'), but Andrijasevic shot at goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic for the critical Hajduk win. Rijeka's coach Simon Rožman resigned after the match, and the club should announce a new coach soon. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 32 points, while Hajduk is in 5th place with 29. 

Gorica v. Istra 1961 (2:1)

Gorica and Istra met on Sunday, February 28, 2021, in Velika Gorica. 

Istra's Bande scored the first goal of the match in the 25th minute, which was the score at the half. Lovric equalized for 1:1 in the 50th minute, and Mudrinski gave Gorica the lead in the 73rd minute for the 2:1 final result. 

Gorica is currently in 3rd place with 46 points, while Istra is in 10th place with 14. 

Dinamo v. Slaven Belupo (3:0)

Dinamo and Slaven Belupo closed out the 23rd round on Sunday, February 28, 2021, at Maksimir Stadium. 

The first half went without goals after a VAR decision called Lauritsen's goal offside in the 37th minute. Gvardiol scored Dinamo's first goal in the 60th minute, followed by Tolic four minutes later for 2:0. Gavranovic made it 3:0 in the 90th minute. 

Dinamo is currently in 1st place with 51 points, while Belupo is in 8th with 21. 

You can see the full HNL table HERE.  

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

February 26, 2021 - Dinamo draws Tottenham in the Europa League round of 16!

Dinamo will play against Tottenham in the Europa League round of 16 after they knocked out Russian club Krasnodar at the start of the knockout phase. Interestingly, Tottenham knocked out Austrian club Wolfsberg, who Dinamo played in the group stage. 

The matches are played on March 11 and 18, and the draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals is on March 19. Dinamo will host the club led by Jose Mourinho in the first game. 

There were no winners in this phase of the competition and clubs from the same country and clubs that played in the same group stage group could meet. Tottenham is one of four clubs with Manchester United, Ajax, and Arsenal that the Croatian champion wanted to avoid.

Mourinho’s side got off to a great start to the season and was at the top of the Premier League, but are in poor form in 2021. Namely, Tottenham has lost five of their last six games in the league and has been knocked out of the FA Cup by Everton. The winner of the Europa League will win a place in the Champions League next season. Winning Europa League is Tottenham's biggest chance for the Champions League, as they are currently in 9th place in the Premier League. 

Tottenham’s biggest stars are Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son. They have scored 13 goals each this season. Gareth Bale also returned to Tottenham from Real Madrid last summer.

According to Transfermarkt, Tottenham is worth as much as EUR 720 million, while the Croatian champion is exactly seven times less.

Last 16 Draw:

Granada - Molde

Slavia - Rangers

Manchester United - Milan

DINAMO - Tottenham

Olympiacos - Arsenal

Roma - Šahtar

Ajax - Young Boys

Dinamo Kijev - Villarreal

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

February 22, 2021 - The 22nd round of the Croatian First League was held from February 19 to 21, 2021. In this round, Osijek tops Rijeka 2:0 at City Garden Stadium. 

Slaven Belupo v. Sibenik (2:2)

Belupo and Sibenik opened the 22nd round on Friday, February 19, 2021, in Koprivnica. 

Ampem scored for the Sibenik lead in the 21st minute for 0:1, which Juric increased to 0:2 in the 39th minute. 

Knoll and Ilicic came back with goals for Belupo in the final minutes of the first half to equalize 2:2, which was the final result.

Belupo is currently in 8th place with 21 points, while Sibenik is in 6th with 25. 

Istra 1961 v. Varazdin (0:1)

Istra and Varazdin met on Saturday, February 20, 2021, in Pula. 

The first half went without goals as Istra's Loncar missed a penalty in the 32nd minute. The only goal of the match came in the 88th minute when Varazdin's Senic scored for 0:1, which was the final result. 

Istra is currently in last place with 14 points, while Varazdin is in 7th with 22. 

Lokomotiva v. Gorica (0:3)

Lokomotiva and Gorica met on Saturday, February 20, 2021, in Zagreb. 

Steenvoorden opened Gorica's scoring spree with an early goal in the 10th minute, which was the score going into the half. Dieye increased Gorica's lead to 0:2 in the 74th minute, and Mitrovic made it 0:3 less than 10 minutes later for 0:3. 

Lokomotiva is currently in 9th place with 18 points, while Gorica is in 3rd with 43. 

Osijek v. Rijeka (2:0)

Osijek and Rijeka closed out the 22nd round on Sunday, February 21, 2021, at City Garden Stadium. 

Osijek's Mierez scored the first goal of the match in the 25th minute for 1:0 at the half. Mierez increased Osijek's lead to 2:0 in the 69th minute, which was the final result. 

Osijek is currently in 2nd place with 48 points, while Rijeka is in 4th with 32. 

The eternal derby between Hajduk and Dinamo at Poljud was postponed as 12 Hajduk players are infected with COVID-19. The match will be played in the first possible free term, and the decision on the date will be made later. You can read more about the decision on Hajduk.hr. 

You can see the full HNL table HERE. 

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

February 18, 2021 - Dinamo Zagreb tops Krasnodar in the first match of the Europa League round of 32. 

Dinamo and Krasnodar met for game one of the Europa League round of 32 in the Russian city of Krasnodar on Thursday evening. 

The Croatian champion arrived in a snowy Russia on Wednesday, where temperatures were around -10 degrees Celsius. The temperature during the match was expected to drop to -11 and even -13, though commentators said it was -6 in the first five minutes of the match. 

Recall, Krasnodar finished third in the Champions League group behind Chelsea and Sevilla and ahead of Rennes. Dinamo, on the other hand, was undefeated in their Europa League group and finished on top ahead of Wolfsberg, Feyenoord, and CSKA Moscow.

Dinamo entered this match without any surprises in the starting 11, while Krasnodar's starting lineup was without Wanderson, their best player. 

Lineups

Krasnodar: Gorodov, Smolnikov, Kaio, Martinovič, Černov, Olsson, Cabella, Vilhena, Sulejmanov, Berg, Claesson

Dinamo: Livaković, Ristovski, Theophile-Catherine, Lauritsen, Gvardiol, Majer, Jakić, Ademi, Ivanušec, Oršić, Petković

Krasnodar v Dinamo Recap

Dinamo was fierce at the start of the match, forcing plays up the wings for an early and dangerous corner kick. Without letting Krasnador taste too much of their half, both teams maintained much of the match in the middle of the pitch. 

It didn't take long for Dinamo to find the back of the net. In the 15th minute, Mislav Orsic's cross eventually found the head of Bruno Petkovic for 0:1.

Dinamo couldn't hold onto their lead for too long, and just under 15 minutes later, Krasnador's Berg equalized for 1:1, which was the halftime result. 

Krasnodar welcomed Wanderson to the starting lineup of the second half, though that didn't help their chances much. Eight minutes into the second half, Orsic nailed a corner to Petkovic, who scored his second goal of the match for the Dinamo lead (1:2). 

Krasnodar dominated in the minutes that followed and threatened Dinamo's goal more than a few times. They even scored from offside. 

But Krasnodar's moment finally came in the 69th minute when Claesson equalized for 2:2. 

Dinamo led for the third time of the match in the 74th minute thanks to the fancy footwork of Ivanusec and brilliant goal by Atiemwen (2:3). 

Four minutes were added by the ref at the end of the match, though neither team was able to score. 

Dinamo and Krasnodar will meet in Zagreb next week. 

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

 February 15, 2021 - The 21st round of the Croatian First League was held from February 12 to 14, 2021.  This round features the battle for first place, in which Dinamo tops Osijek, while COVID-19 rips through Hajduk, forcing the postponement of Hajduk v Slaven Belupo at Poljud.

Varazdin v. Lokomotiva (0:1)

Varazdin and Lokomotiva opened the 21st round on Friday, February 12, 2021, in Varazdin. 

The only goal of the match came thanks to a penalty in the 29th minute, which Pivaric scored for 0:1. Lokomotiva's Leksic was sent off in the 2nd minute of added time at the end of the match. 

Varazdin is currently in 8th place with 19 points, while Lokomotiva is in 9th with 18 points. 

Gorica v. Sibenik (1:0)

Gorica and Sibenik met in Velika Gorica on Saturday, February 13, 2021. 

While the first half went without goals, Babec scored for Gorica to make it 1:0 in the 71st minute, which was the final score of the match. 

Gorica is currently in 3rd place with 39 points, while Sibenik is in 6th with 24. 

Dinamo v. Osijek (1:0)

Dinamo and Osijek met for the highly anticipated derby on Saturday, February 13, 2021, at Maksimir Stadium. 

Yet another low-scoring match, the only goal came in the 15th minute thanks to Orsic, which give Dinamo the 1:0 victory. Ristovski received a red card in the 77th minute, forcing Dinamo to play with a man down for the remainder of the match. 

Dinamo is currently in 1st place with 48 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 45. 

Rijeka v. Istra 1961 (1:1)

Rijeka and Istra closed out the 21st round at Rujevica Stadium on Sunday, February 14, 2021. 

Grzan gave Istra the early lead in the 6th minute, but only two minutes later, Rijeka's Muric came back to equalize for 1:1, which was the final score of the match. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 31 points, while Istra is in last place with 14 points. 

Hajduk was ravaged by COVID-19, which forced the postponement of their match against Slaven Belupo at Poljud on Sunday. The biggest derby against Dinamo on February 21 is under question as well. 

The Split club announced that it would ask for the match to be postponed because as many as 20 of the 33 members who traveled to Osijek and Rijeka have been infected. Namely, 12 players and eight staff members are COVID-19 positive. 

Split epidemiologists will send samples to Zagreb on Monday to find out if it is a new strain of coronavirus, or the UK variant. 

You can see the full HNL table HERE. 

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