VARAžDIN. Rijeka defeats Varaždin with a 2-0 win with a goal from E. Banda (13′) and an own goal from L. Škaričić (53′). Varaždin was truly superior in terms of ball possession (61%).
The match was played at the Stadion Anđelko Herjavec stadium in Varaždin on Saturday and it started at 3:00 pm local time. The referee was Fran Jović assisted by Luka Pušić and Ivan Starčević. The 4th official was Toni Dadić. The weather was broken clouds. The temperature was quite cold at 4.68 degrees Celsius or 40.42 Fahrenheit. The humidity was 63%.
Match Statistics
Ball possession
Varaždin had a strong ball possession 61% while Rijeka was struggling with a 39% ball possession.
Attitude and shots
Rijeka was more aggressive with 42 dangerous attacks and 16 shots of which 5 were on target. This is one of the reasons why Rijeka won the match.
Varaždin shot 9 times, 3 on target, 5 off target. Regarding the opposition, Rijeka shot 16 times, 5 on target, 9 off target.
Cards
Varaždin received 2 yellow cards (Igor Postonjski and Luka Jelenić). On the other side, Rijeka received 3 yellow cards (Alen Grgic, Emmanuel Banda and Marijan Cabraja).
Match Timeline
Standings
After playing this match, Varaždin will stay with 17 points like Slaven Koprivnica to remain in the 6th place. On the other side, Rijeka will have 31 points to remain in the 2nd place.
Next matches
In the next match in the 1. HNL, Varaždin will host Gorica on the 30th of March with a 5-5 head to head stats.
Rijeka will host Gorica on the 20th of April with a 10-8 head to head record in favor of Gorica (3 draws).
Varaždin – Formation
Varaždin started with an extremely aggressive line-up (3-4-3).
The manager Mario Kovačević decided to play with the following team: Oliver Zelenika , Luka Jelenić , Luka Škaričić , Jorgo Pëllumbi , Marko Vukcevic , Marin Pilj , Igor Postonjski , Antonio Boršić , Dimitar Mitrovski , Domagoj Drožđek and Michele Šego .
The home team had on the bench: Karlo Bručić, Lamine Ba, Leon Belcar , Josip Silic, Leonard Vuk, Karlo Lusavec, Lovro Banovec , Noa Vugrinec , David Mistrafovic, Karlo Perić, Niko Domjanić and Andrea Capone .
Substitutions
Varaždin made 5 changes: Marin Pilj for Leon Belcar (59′), Luka Škaričić for Lovro Banovec (58′), Domagoj Drožđek for Niko Domjanić (74′), Michele Šego for Noa Vugrinec (74′) and Dimitar Mitrovski for Andrea Capone (87′).
Player of the match: Domagoj Drožđek
As per our analysis, the most impressive player for Varaždin was Domagoj Drožđek.
His rating is with 10 passes (80% accurate) and 1 key pass. He performed 1 cross.
Rijeka – Formation
Rijeka started with a 4-2-3-1 line-up (4-2-3-1).
Željko Sopić played with: Nediljko Labrovic , Ivan Smolcic , Emir Dilaver , Matej Mitrovic , Marijan Cabraja , Lindon Selahi , Emmanuel Banda , Momo Yansane , Toni Fruk , Niko Jankovic and Franjo Ivanovic .
These were the players on the bench: Bruno Goda, Niko Galesic , Steven Juncaj, Jorge Obregón , Martin Zlomislic, Dejan Petrovic , Alen Grgic , Veldin Hodza , Stjepan Radeljic, Silvio Ilinkovic, Bruno Bogojevic and Danilo Veiga.
Substitutions
Rijeka made 5 changes: Emmanuel Banda for Veldin Hodza (63′), Momo Yansane for Alen Grgic (63′), Franjo Ivanovic for Jorge Obregón (75′), Niko Jankovic for Dejan Petrovic (75′) and Lindon Selahi for Niko Galesic (83′).
Player of the match: Lindon Selahi
The most impressive player for Rijeka was Lindon Selahi even if he didn’t score any goal.
His rating is with 34 passes (82% accurate) and 2 key passes. He won 10 duels out of 11.
Results of the day
These are the results of the day in the 1. HNL.