September 21, 2020 - The 5th round of the Croatian First League was held from September 18 to 20, 2020.  This round saw Dinamo and Slaven Belupo draw, while the Adriatic Derby between Rijeka and Hajduk was postponed due to commitments in the Europa League this week. 

Sibenik v. Lokomotiva (3:2)

Sibenik and Lokomotiva opened the 5th round on Friday, September 18, 2020, at Stadion Subicevac. 

Ampem opened the scoring for Sibenik in the 11th minute for 1:0. Lokomotiva's Kallaku equalized in the 33rd for 1:1. Juric's goal six minutes before the half put Sibenik back in the lead. 

Sammir equalized for Lokomotiva in the 69th minute, but an 84th-minute goal by Ampem gave Sibenik the 3:2 win. 

Sibenik is currently in 8th place with 4 points, while Lokomotiva is in 9th place with 4 points. 

Gorica v. Istra 1961 (2:2)

Gorica and Istra met in the 5th round on Saturday, September 19, 2020, in Velika Gorica. 

Vuk scored for the Istra lead in the 11th minute, though Spikic scored the equalizer for Lokomotiva in the 29th. A Suk goal for Gorica was called back thanks to VAR just before the half. 

A red card for Steenvoorden in the 73rd minute saw Gorica play a man down for the remainder of the game, while Grzan nailed the penalty to put Istra back in the lead.  In the 89th minute, Delfi scored the equalizer for the final score of 2:2.

Gorica is currently in 2nd place with 13 points, while Istra is in 10th with one point. 

Dinamo v. Slaven Belupo (3:3)

Dinamo and Slaven Belupo met on Saturday, September 19, 2020, at Maksimir stadium. 

An early Belupo goal by Etoundi shocked Dinamo in the first minute of the game. However, Gavranovic equalized three minutes later for 1:1 in the 4th minute. Gavranovic scored again in the 8th minute for the Dinamo lead. A Belupo penalty in the 22nd minute saw Krstanovic score the equalizer for 2:2 at the half. 

Lovro Majer put Dinamo back in the lead for 3:2 in the 69th minute, while Knoll equalized for the final score of 3:3. Belupo's Zirdum received a double-yellow.

Dinamo is currently in first place with 13 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 4. 

Varazdin v. Osijek (0:1)

Varazdin and Osijek closed out the 5th round this weekend Sunday, September 20, 2020, at NK Varteks Stadium. 

The only goal of the match came in the 15th minute when Zaper scored for the Osijek win. 

Varazdin is currently in 5th place with 7 points, while Osijek is in 4th with 7 points. 

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August 31, 2020 - The 3rd round of the Croatian First League was held from August 28 to 30, 2020. This round saw Dinamo top Osijek 4:1, and Hajduk and Belupo draw at Poljud. The 3rd round was played without the presence of spectators. 

Gorica v. Sibenik (3:2)

Gorica and Sibenik opened the third round of the Croatian First League on August 28, 2020, in Velika Gorica. 

Mudrinski opened the scoring for Gorica with a goal in the third minute for 1:0. Bulat had the chance to equalize in the 45th minute though he missed a penalty. 

Lovric increased Gorica's lead to 2:0 in the 65th minute, and Babec made it 3:0 in the 75th. Rak scored in the 87th minute for 3:1, and Anocic in the third minute of added time for the final score of 3:2. 

Gorica is currently in 2nd place with 9 points, while Sibenik is in 9th place with 0. 

Rijeka v. Istra 1961 (2:1)

Rijeka and Gorica met on August 29, 2020, at Rujevica Stadium in Rijeka. 

Andrijasevic scored the first goal of the game in the 13th minute for the 1:0 at the half. Andrijasevic scored again in the 69th minute for 2:0, though Guzina got one for Istra in the 70th for the final score of 2:1. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 6 points, while Istra is in the last place with 0 points. 

Hajduk v. Slaven Belupo (2:2)

Hajduk and Belupo met on Saturday, August 29, 2020, at Poljud Stadium in Split.

Krstanovic scored a Belupo penalty in the 38th minute for 0:1 at the half. Diamantakos scored in his Hajduk debut for 1:1 in the 52nd minute. 

Gyursco put Hajduk in the 2:1 lead in the 65th minute, though Bacelic-Grgic equalized for 2:2 six minutes later. Jairo received a double-yellow in the 85th minute, forcing Hajduk to play with a man down for the remainder of the match. 

Hajduk is currently in 3rd place with 8 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 2 points. 

Varazdin v. Lokomotiva (1:1)

Varazdin and Lokomotiva met on Sunday, August 30, 2020, at NK Varteks Stadium. 

Mehdikhani scored just before the half for 1:0 Varazdin. However, an own goal by Rodin made it 1:1 in the 49th minute, which was the final score of the game. 

Varazdin is currently in 5th place with 4 points, while Lokomotiva is in 6th with 4. 

Dinamo v. Osijek (4:1)

Dinamo and Osijek closed out the 3rd round at Maksimir Stadium on Sunday, August 31, 2020.

Gavranovic opened the scoring spree for Dinamo with a goal in the 5th minute for 1:0. Majstorovic missed a penalty for Osijek right before the half. 

Grezda equalized in the 48th minute for 1:1, though Ademi put Dinamo back in the lead with a goal in the 71st minute. Two penalties secured Dinamo's victory - one by Andric in the 81st and Tolic in the 86th. 

Dinamo is currently in 1st place with 9 points, while Osijek is in 8th with 1.

You can see the full HNL table here. 

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June 26, 2020 - Hajduk and Slaven Belupo met at Poljud Stadium for the 31st round of the Croatian First League. It was Hajduk's first game in front of home fans since the league came to a halt because of COVID-19. 

After Gorica topped Rijeka at Rujevica Stadium on Friday night, Hajduk met Slaven Belupo in front of their fans for the first time in 114 days. Recall, while other clubs were able to welcome back their fans already a few rounds ago, the Split club had to serve a punishment of a game behind closed doors. 

With the coronavirus on the rise again in Croatia, stricter measures were enforced at the stadium. Namely, temperature checks were reinstated for journalists at the entrance, while we were asked to disinfect our hands before entering. Furthermore, we had to sit one per table instead of the usual two. The jumbo screen at the stadium also reminded fans to keep a distance of 1.5 meters. 

Whether they feared the coronavirus would spread or were boycotting because of Hajduk's last two losses and drop to 5th place, the stadium wasn't nearly as full as expected, considering the Split club's beloved fans haven't seen them play in the flesh in almost four months. Namely, only 4,523 fans were in attendance. 

Hajduk played with a bit of a weaker squad on Friday night, missing a few starting players due to injuries and yellow cards. Slaven Belupo was also in a weaker form. A win for Hajduk was imperative.

The fans at Poljud showed enthusiasm at the beginning and Torcida's chants certainly helped Hajduk to their first goal. Caktaks scored a penalty for 1:0 in the 10th minute. 

Slaven Belupo equalized thanks to an easy goal by Medjimorec in the 25th minute. The game ended 1:1 at the half. 

The second half started with only one Hajduk substitution, as Dolcek came on for Colina. Hajduk was quick to score their second goal, which came in the 59th minute. A header by Eduok rattled the Belupo keeper for 2:1!

Belupo was awarded a VAR penalty in the 90th minute, which was hit wide to keep the game 2:1 for Hajduk. Nine minutes of injury time were added, though neither team was able to score. Hajduk won 2:1. 

Dinamo and Osijek close out the 31st round on Saturday at Maksimir Stadium. Stay tuned for our 31st round recap on Monday. 

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June 1, 2020 - After the semi-final games last weekend, Lokomotiva and Rijeka will meet in the Croatian Cup final on August 1, 2020. 

Croatian football finally returned last weekend, albeit looking a bit different in the corona era. 

Namely, HNS reports that Statehood Day brought the continuation of football competitions in Croatia, and Slaven Belupo and Lokomotiva kicked off in the first semi-final of the Croatian Cup on Saturday. The match was watched live by the president of the Croatian Football Federation Davor Šuker and the coach of the Croatia national team, Zlatko Dalić.

The Koprivnica club took the lead in the sixth minute of the game, when Goda shook the net with a great long-distance shot under Grbić's crossbar (1:0).

The turnaround was directed by Zagreb in the second half, in the 67th and 79th minute of the game, when Cokaj (1:1) and Tolić (2:1) beat Filipović, with assists by Sammir, who entered the game in the middle of the second half.

Uzuni set the final score of 3:1 for Lokomotiva in injury time. 

In the second match of the Cup semi-final on Sunday, Rijeka and Osijek met in Rujevica.

Less than half an hour before the end of the game, Osijek led with 0:2 with goals by Bočkaj (16th, 48th minutes), but Rijeka managed to achieve a turnaround after playing a man up in the second half and with the help of referee Pajač. Murić (66th), Čolak (73rd, penalty ) and Yateke (86th) were the goalscorers for Rijeka.

Rijeka will thus play in the Cup final for the seventh time. So far, it has lifted the winning trophy five times (2005, 2006, 2014, 2017, 2019). Its rival in the final, which will be played on August 1 in Šibenik, will be Lokomotiva. It will be Lokomotiva's second appearance in the final, after they lost to Hajduk in 2013.

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

April 9, 2019 - The 27th and 28th rounds of the Croatian First League was held from April 2 to 8, 2019, for one very busy week of Croatian football.

Hajduk’s chances of catching up to Dinamo have been shot down after drawing in Koprivnica to Slaven Belupo.

Hajduk has finally named the new trainer of the club after the dismissal of Joan Carrillo last week. 

The seventh round of the Croatian First League was completed last night.

After a shock defeat to RNK Split during a Croatian Cup match last week, Hajduk trainer Marijan Pušnik and the club parted ways. Today, Hajduk has named their new trainer.

After the pause for National team friendlies, it is time for round 29 of CFL