ENGLAND
PHOTO: tottenhamhotspur.com, Luka Modrić
Four of Croatia’s bright young stars were featured in Tottenham Hotspurs’ 3-1 handling of a mediocre Blackburn Rovers side. The Crottenham trio of Vedran Ćorluka, Niko Kranjčar and Luka Modrić played the entire contest, (Modrić was subbed out in the 89′) to an entertaining packed-to-capacity White Hart Lane while Nikola Kalinić played the entire match for Blackburn.
PHOTO: AFP/Getty Images, Niko Kranjčar in the background
For Ćorluka, a relatively easy day on defense was highlighted on Jermaine Defoe’s first goal. In the 45′, Kranjčar launched a corner kick, which glanced off the head of Ćorluka and found its way to Defoe, parked right in front of the net for an easy tally.
PHOTO: tottenhamhotspur.com, Niko Kranjčar
Luka Modrić played a key role in the second goal of the match for Spurs. Moving up field with ease after playing fairly deep in Spurs territory, Luka found teammate Defoe with a lobbed pass, who in turn avoided an effort on goal, opting instead to pass to Pavlyuchenko, who put the ball away. Modrić had another effort on goal when Sebastien Bassong carried the ball out of defense and found his ‘Luka’, but the ‘midfield maestro’ dragged his finish just wide of the target.
Original Video – More videos at TinyPic
VIDEO: Kalinić Strike
Despite the impressive win, the performance of Nikola Kalinić should not be overlooked. Rated a 7 by skysports.com, the former Hajduk Split striker gave a Champions League caliber Spurs side all they could handle. Multiple efforts on goal throughout the day culminated with late effort that was called off because of handball. Kalinić has been performing better and better with each week, and he can easily become one of the most exciting players in the Premiership with due time as he progresses towards next season.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
The victory keeps Spurs in the coveted 4th position in the EPL standings. The London side are away at Stoke City next weekend while Blackburn Rovers, currently 12th in the standings, take on Chelsea next Sunday.
PHOTO: Neil Tingle/Sportsphoto/Allstar, Eduardo da Silva
Arsenal took home 3 points after a last gasp goal from Nicklas Bendtner in a 2-1 victory over Hull City from the Kingston Communications Stadium . Eduardo entered the contest in the 76′ for Samir Nasri in an effort to genereate an offensive boost for the London club, who controlled the ball for 69% of the contest. Although a brief appearance against a weak opponent, Dudu is still trying to regain his full form after suffering a hamstring injury last month, so it was a welcome conditioning assignment for him today.
Ivan Klasnić
Bolton Wanderers crushed Wigan Athletic 4-0 from the Reebok Stadium with just over 20,000 fans in attendance. Ivan Klasnić entered the contest in the 76′ for teammate Kevin Davies. Bolton are away at Everton next weekend.
GERMANY
PHOTO: schalke04.de, Ivan Rakitić and company celebrating
Schalke 04 went to the top of the Bundesliga standings (if only for a few hours) after defeating a formidable opponent in VfB Stuttgart on Friday night. The ever-impressive Ivan Rakitić continued with his solid form in the victory, playing the entire contest. With each successive week, Ivan is proving that his recent revival in form an attitude towards his club has been no fluke and will carry on until the end of the season. On a belated note, Ivan was voted Schalke 04 Spieler des Monats (Player of the Month) for February.
PHOTO: fcbayern.t-home.de, Ivica Olić
Despite a slow start, the surging Bayern Munich squad continued their on-field dominance with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory against SC Freiburg at the Allianz Arena with 69,000 thanks in large part to the brilliance of Arjen Robben. Ivica Olić and Danijel Pranjić both started for the Bavarian juggernauts, with Pranjić (who received a yellow card in the 11′) coming out of the game in the 71′ for Anatoliy Tymoschuk.
On the Freiburg side of the ball, Ivica Banović started the contest but was subbed in the 72′ for teammate Cedric Makiadi.
No less than a victory would have been acceptable for Bayern, who controlled the ball 71% of the match. Olić and Pranjić both contributed to the victory with a tenacious display of offensive skill and wit against the lowly Freiburg side. A glancing header on target by Olić as well as an off-target attempt by Pranjić were the closest scoring opportunities on the afternoon for the Bayern Croats
PHOTO: scfreiburg.com, Danijel Pranjić(23) disappointed after giving up the lone Freiburg Goal
Bayern round out the Bundesliga standings and are away at Eintracht Frankfurt while Freiburg are in 17th place and host Mainz next weekend.
PHOTO: achtzehn99.de, Josip Šimunić
TSG Hoffenheim lost a hard fought contest 1-0 to a visiting Werder Bremen side from the Rhein-Neckar-Arena after a goal from Claudio Pizzaro in the 80′. Josip Šimunić played the entire contest for Hoffenheim, earning a yellow card in the 83′ of the match, just after the frustrating goal was scored to quiet the home crowd. Hoffenheim are in 11th place and are away at Nurnberg next weekend.
Mladen Petrić
Bayer Leverkusen defeated Hamburg SV 4-2 from the BayArena with 30,000 in attendance. Mladen Petrić played the entire contest in the losing effort. The loss drops Hamburg to 5th place in the Bundesliga standings as they head into this weeks UEFA Europa League fixture with Anderlecht before returning to Germany for a match against visiting Schalke 04.
FRANCE
PHOTO: olweb.fr, Dejan Lovren
Dejan Lovren played the entire match in Lyons 1-1 draw against St. Etienne in French Ligue 1 action this weekend. The match was played at the Stade de Gerland with some 36,000 fans in attendance. Granted, Lyon could not afford to put the young, inexperienced Croat on the roster for this past weeks stunning victory over Real Madrid in the Champions League. Lovren is clearly at fault for the St. Etienne goal by failing to cover the opposing striker, who sat alone in front of the net waiting for the cross.
GOALS FROM THE MATCH
Things may seem a bit overwhelming for young Dejan at the moment: new country, new culture, new league, new system. Regardless, it will take some time and there will be some bumps in the road along the way, but he will develop into a solid player in time to help replace the aging Lyon defensive corps.
Lyon are 4th in the French Ligue 1 standings, although first place Bordeaux are only 2 points above them. Next up: away at league rival Marseille.
PHOTO: rclens.fr, Vedran Runje at Saturday practice
Vedran Rujne and Lens tasted bitter defeat, losing 1-0 to Lorient after a 79′ goal from Sylvain Marchal on Saturday night from the Stade du Moustoir. The loss puts Lens in 15th place of the Ligue 1 standings heading into next weekends match against guests Sochaux.
ITALY
PHOTO: lastampa.it, Dario Knežević
Dario Knežević played the entire match in Livorno’s 3-3 draw against visitors AS Roma, earning a yellow card in the 24′. Knežević also earned AS Roma a penalty shot in the 40′(which was missed) after pulling down an opposition player in the box. The result provides a much needed point to Livorno, who now sit in 18th place in the Serie A standings. Though they remain in the relegation zone, there is still the possibility that they will remain in the Serie A for next season.
Mato Jajalo
Mato Jajalo was not featured in Siena’s roster for a 3-3 draw against Juventus.
Igor Budan
Igor Budan was not featured in Palermo’s roster for a 3-2 loss against Udinese.
SPAIN
Mate Bilić
Mate Bilić was an unused substitute in Sporting Gijon’s 0-0 draw with Athletic Bilbao
RUSSIA
PHOTO: fc-zenit.ru, Ivica Križanac
After an underwhelming 2009 campaign, Zenit St. Petersburg opened the 2010 Russian Premier League season with a solid 1-0 victory over PFK Samara Kryliya Sovetov with 18,000 in attendance from the Metallurg Stadium. Ivica Križanac, who is now beginning his 6th season with Zenit, played the entire contest for his side. Next weekend, Zenit host Spartak Moscow.
Tomislav Dujmović
FK Rubin Kazan defeated Lokomotiv Moscow 2-0 from the Tsentralnyi Stadium with 12,500 in attendance. Newly minted Croatian NT callup Tomislav Dujmović played the entire match, receiving a yellow card in the 59′. Lokomotiv Moscow host PFK Samara Kryliya Sovetov next weekend.
Pletikosa to London this summer?
Stipe Pletikosa remains out of the Spartak Moscow lineup since severely injuring knee ligaments this past summer in training with his club. On the day he injured his knee, all signs pointed to a move to London to join his fellow Croatian NT teammates at Tottenham Hotspur. With summer 2010 approaching, and Pleti still out of the Spartak lineup, is this finally the year Stipe makes his move to the EPL that he has so desperately been seeking?
UKRAINE
PHOTO: shakhtar.com, Darijo Srna
Darijo Srna played the entire contest in Shakhtar Donetsk’s 2-1 win over Metalist. Next weekend, Srna and company take on Zorya in the Ukranian Premier League.
PHOTO: fcdynamo.kiev.ua, Ognjen Vukojević celebrating with teammates
Dynamo Kiev re-established their three-point lead at the top of the Ukranian Premier League standings with a 1-0 win over Vorskla by way of a goal from Andriy Shevchenko. Ognjen Vukojević made an appearance during the contest, although at this time it is unknown what his impact was on the final outcome of the match. Dynamo Kiev take on Metallurg Donetsk next weekend.
TURKEY
Drago Gabrić
A last minute goal by Gomes da Costa Carlos Alanzinho gave Trabzonspor a point to take home from the Kamil Ocak Stadium, as they battled with Gaziantepsor to a 1-1 draw in Turkish Super League action on Friday night. Drago Gabrić entered the contest in the 61′ minute for teammate Engin Baytar. Hrvoje Čale was not featured on Trabzonspor’s roster after picking up an injury this past week. Trabzonspor host perrenial Turkish powers Galatasaray next weekend.
AUSTRIA
Nikola Pokrivač
Red Bull Salzburg defeated guests Kapfenberg SV 1-0 in Austrian Bundesliga action. Nikola Pokrivač played the entire contest for his side, receiving a yellow card in the 68′. Red Bull Salzburg continue to lead in the standings with the victory and will be away at Austria Vienna next weekend.
PHOTO: skrapid.at, A masked Nikica Jelavić celebrating with teammates
Rapid Vienna defeated city rivals Austria Vienna 2-0 from the Gerhard-Hanappi Stadium. Nikica Jelavić, still donning a protective mask after suffering a broken nose 2 weeks ago, played the entire match and scored in the 76′. The match was punctuated with red cards for 2 Austria Vienna players towards the end of the game for committing rough fouls following a very frustrating day against their rivals and a raucous home crowd. Rapid remain in 2nd place of the Austrian Bundesliga standings and are away at SK Sturm Graz next weekend.
BELGIUM
Ivan Perišić
Due to a minor injury, Ivan Perišić was not featured in Club Brugge’s roster for a 1-0 win over his former club Roeselare.
~Ivica Peroš, reporting from Long Island, New York
Petric has 5 shots on Anderlecht and the 5th one goes in. When his midfielders supply him the ball enough times, he's bound to score. Some games he doesn't even get 2 shots on net…or any I think.
just on the note lovren cant play in the CL not because lyon cant afford to play him but he is not eligible because he played in it for dinamo
I think my comment didn't come up. Anyway, this is the link for the Rapid Wien vs Austria Wien match (Jelavic's goal at 2:11):
http://www.footytube.com/video/sk-rapid-wien-fk-austria-wien-mar14-36987
I was hoping to get a video of the jelavic goal, but no dice. Anyone else out there have it?
Ivica, well done. Ante and I returned from Indian Wells at 12:30am, and I am off to San Diego for a few days until Hajduk Night on Wednesday.
I will agree with Ante on this one. Joze saw us and heard us on Australian TV…haha..
A slow week for Croatians this week. Good thing Nikica "zoro" Jelavic showed up to play.
Great Runje picture.
"Is he out of it?"
Good stuff Ivica! Way to pick up the slack while Denis and I were at Indian Wells catching the Croatians play tennis. We'll try to put something together for you guys from the tourney.
All I have to say now is that Ancic's victory over Benneteau belongs 20% to Team CSR.