Dinamo Zagreb as re established itself on top of the table after beating RNK Split 3-0 on Saturday at Maksimir.
Until yesterday, Split reigned as the league leader but suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Modri.
Split had a scoring chance early in the match and forced Eduardo to make a big save in the fifth minute to keep the match tied.
Only three minutes later, another near-goal for Split arose thanks to an unforced error from Josip Pivarić who attempted a back pass to Eduardo but miss played the ball. Pivarić sent the ball inches away from goal, but avoided embarrassment and scoring on his own team as the ball rolled out of bounds for a corner kick.
Dinamo soon regained composure and began putting pressure on Split and creating scoring chances themselves.
In the 28th minute, Dinamo’s efforts paid off and El Arbi Hillel Soudani scored the match’s first goal.
Ante Čorić brought the ball down the left side and beat defender Jure Obišvač twice with an impressive display of footwork before sending a cross that Soudani met with a header to score the match’s first goal.
Jeremy Taravel was eager to double Dinamo’s lead and used a free-kick opportunity to create an attempt on goal. Taravel lined up for a free kick nearly 30 yards out and sent a laser on net, but Danijel Zagorac tracked the shot well and dove out to make the save.
“Plavi, Plavi” was played over the PA system for a second time in the opening second of the second half after Paulo Machado scored to make it 2-0 for Dinamo.
This time, it was Soudani who put on the fancy footwork moves on the Split defense before sending the ball perfectly in line with Machado’s run towards goal. Machado easily beat Zagorac with a simple tap of the ball.
Split’s Dražen Bargarić nearly put his team on the scoreboard but failed to score on a breakaway opportunity.
Bargarić found himself one-on-one with Eduardo, but the experienced goalkeeper immediately came to the top of the box and did well cutting off the angle for Bagarić.
Bagaric was able to get his own rebound, but Eduardo was still there and dove on the ball that Bargarić had at his feet.
Dinamo’s final goal was the most impressive of the day, and took only five touches from four players to finish it.
Taravel sent the ball to Domagoj Antolić who cleverly flicked the ball to Junior Fernandes. Fernandes immediately returned it to Antolić who then sent it across the face of the goal to Angelo Henriquez, the goalscorer who tapped it in with the final touch.
Dinamo are once again at the top of the table, but the question is who will dethrone them? Dinamo have already faced Hajduk Split, Rijeka, and RNK Split. With some of the toughest matches of the season already completed, will any other team be able to force Dinamo to drop any points?
Dinamo will now go on to face Albania’s Skënderbeu Korçë in the first leg of the Champions League playoff round.
The Jadranski Derbi tok place on Saturday, but was underwhelming in the scoring department and ended with a 0-0 draw.
Rijeka has extended their unbeaten run against Hajduk to 12 consecutive matches.
The match which tool place at Rijeka’s temporary home, Rujevica, had every other aspect you would expect from a heated rivalry; six yellow cards, two red cards, and some of the most passionate fans Europe has to offer.
From the first minute, Rijeka controlled the ball in the contest and showed more offense than they did in the entire match against Dinamo last week.
But Rijeka was at a disadvantage come the 15th minute when Moises and Josip Juranović were sparring for the ball when Moises elbow seemed to have hit Juranović’s jaw.
The referee’s decision was a surprise and issued a straight red card to the Brazilian. Moises’ pleas were in vain and he was sent off.
The disadvantage did not seem to deter Rijeka too much from trying to take the lead, and had several quality scoring chances before the half’s end.
Hajduk also pushed for the elusive goal with quality chances of their own, but neither team was able to make their chances count.
The second half saw the playing fields even out with an issuing of a red card to Hajduk’s defender, Julian Velazquez.
Velazquez’s debut with his new club did not go as planned and was sent off after a late and reckless tackle on Stefan Ristofski.
Each team finished the match with 10 men and were forced to split the points despite a fair amount of quality scoring chances.
Rijeka will travel to Split next week to face RNK Split while Hajduk will first focus on the Europa League playoff this week, then face NK Osijek at Poljud.
Rijeka and Dinamo are the only clubs remaining without a loss this season.
NK Inter Zaprešić got their first win this weekend against the likes of Slaven Belupo.
Inter, led by talented goal scorer, Ilja Nestorovski, won with a score of 2-1.
The victory for Inter was well deserved, but was not an easy one. Inter went down 1-0 early in the match after Slaven’s Mate Delić scored in the 31st minute.
But Inter’s resiliency showed. The team came out in the second half determined to score the tying goal. Their aggressive play paid off in the 58th minute with a goal from Ivan Blazević.
Blazević’s goal came from a free kick 25 yards out that he bent in to the goal. The impressive free kick was sent over the wall and dipped into the lower far corner of the goal, leaving the goalkeeper no chance.
Inter got some help with a man advantage in the 58th minute after Filip Ozobić’s flying kick landed in the head and neck region of Dominik Glavina.
Ozobić was rightfully issued a straight red card and sent off. Glavina would remain in the game until being subbed off for tactical reasons in the 72nd minute.
Nestorovski was the hero of Zaprešić again after he headed home the game winning goal.
Nestorovski jumped up for a free header upon the arrival of the ball that was crossed in over the goal box. Slaven’s Dino Stiglec just helplessly watched as Nestorovski scored.
Inter move up to sixth place with the victory.
NK Zagreb now remain the only team without a win.
Zagreb and NK Istra 1961 played to a 1-1 draw over the weekend, further extending the gap between Istra and the top of the table.
The former leaders of the league are now three points behind the top.
Zagreb’s Filip Kovinović put his team in the lead with his 47th minute goal.
The visitors from Pula tied the match in the 62nd minute with Nikola Zizić scored.
The teams split the points and Zagreb remains in last place while Istra rest in third place.
NK Osijek will play NK Lokomotiva today at 2 pm EST
Watch a live stream http://sportska-tv.in/lag/17
The Druga HNL started this weekend. NK Zadar’s quest to return to Croatia’s top league has not started off well, as they lost 5-0 NK Dugopolje on Friday.
@euro
Bang on they are Croatia’s team. The only one. 🙂
Croatia’s what?
Congrats to dinamo. Croatia’ s team.
Bravo slavonac. You tell the homer.
Ziva…we can slice and dice this every way you want, at the end of the day some teams get easier draws, some get tougher draws…they have made it this far, using the team they have with the money they’ve made by selling players in their system.
Look at the whole picture…….very nice accomplishment. But, look at the draw thy had and how they played. Very fortunate to play teams nobody has heard of before. That can’t be overlooked or overstated enough.
@slavonac
If they make it to the next stage this is a major accomplishment. Seems a lot of bitter people on this site because of the win but I guess that is the way it goes.
Everything you guys have said is 100% true, I agree Dinamo is nowhere near as good at the top 32 teams…but neither are so many teams that end up qualifying for the World Cup!
They have done well enough to make it this far under these rules…and these rules apply to all Nations, not just Mamic’s Dinamo.
Small country, 2 decent teams, shitty league, little attendance and yet…Dinamo is still doing ok…not good or great…but better than any other team in Croatia for over 10 years!
@lovro……section 8 dinamo, i like that. Or section * (insert club team here)
Props to you guys by coming up with some new nicknames. I takes the burden away from me.
Section 8 dinamo
Grobar hezonja
those are some of the new names you guys have delivered in recent weeks. props!!!
Big accomplishment for Dinamo, but the new format that came along with Platini helps them and the other smaller clubs. Personally, i think it is unfair as we get clubs who don’t deserve to be there. For those of you who follow handball, it is the equivalent of the World Championships in handball where the likes of Australia, Bahrain, Kenya are awarded spots in the world championships because the meet the quota. Same thing here with Europski dinamo. They have taken advantage of a flawed system. The results in the CL prove that.
They will be one of 32, but they are not even close to the best 32.
Dinamo being allowed entrance into the Champions League when there are at least 40 teams in the Europa League better than them, is like Affirmative Action allowing lesser qualified miniorites to fill certain work positions.
They are “Champions” of teams such as Slaven Belupo, Zadar, and Istra 1961.
– or maybe more like section 8 housing appilcants allowed to live in a building.
Oh wow! Another Internet article where we can all learn every single thing that happened!! Thank goodness for the Internet revolution!!! It’s 300x better and more reliable than from people who were actually there and witnessed it themselves because that is so rude and 1990’s-y.
honest to the point of recklessness, self centered to the exxxxxxtreme
oh boy…I hope this isn’t true!
“BBB-i orobili benzinsku u Čapljini”
not sure if this is a reliable source but it wouldn’t surprise me that some of these BBB are criminals:
http://poskok.info/wp/hrvatska-braca-bbb-i-orobili-benzinsku-u-capljini-policija-ih-ne-pusta-u-albaniju/
criminals at it again!!!
@Ziva Istina
How am I supposed to be encouraged about the Basketball team when they’ve done nothing but win six meaningless friendly games? We’ll save the Basketball comments for when Eurobasket starts because these meaningless games don’t mean shit.
Pasalic scores again for Monaco.
Sude Mi,
many teams that have a roster 10 times the size of Dinamo’s value shit the bed and don’t make it past this stage or the next. the point here is, it is very difficult to qualify for this and I think this is where some don’t understand. that level of soccer gets a lot tougher once you get to Nations that have stronger leagues, more money, better programs…I think your comment about them shitting the bed is realistic, but not necessarily a failure, even if we expect more from them.
Sude Mi,
I can already predict it if you’d like. The comments, that is.
Fourteen Million Euro’s to get into the group stages….I would also suggest there is gate receipts but that is for a team that draws fans.
I guess that cash will buy a few nice vehicles for the Mamic clan….enjoy, as Ante B. is right sorry to say but they will shit the bed in the group stages….entirely predictable but enjoy the ride.
Ziva,
what’s the rule on being a jocksniffer of a fan club?
Dinamo wins or loses, a fan is always a fan!
I’m just flash forwarding to all of your comments once Dinamo starts losing 4:1, 3:0 i sl. in the group stages. It’s always a vicious cycle.
LOL.
Ante’s so bitter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lra-HqF5CoI
nice goal!
Te amo Dinamo Zagreb! Eu amo a camisa azul!! I naprijed plavi, a musica esta cantando, bodri vas estadio inteiro, milhares de srca sad za vas batidas jer a la Dinamo je campeao!!!! Aleee aleeee
Samo naprid Dinamo.
if they make it, it is definitely an achievement. to make it to the Group Stage of Europe is a very good accomplishment and regardless of if people think a Croatian team should play with Croatians only, they have no damn clue what they’re talking about…and yet they think they’re somehow relevant!
if they qualify…12 million is the prize…thats not bad for a small team in a pretty BIG continent.
Game was entertaining and they will make champions league. Not bad, I believe this is the third time in Five years. Maybe this time they do a bit better.
Hopefully Hajduk makes it tomorrow for Europa league. Good to see two Croatian teams playing.
Dynamo Zagrebia!! Aleeee ale aleeee aloooo
Yo quiero Dinamooooooo
I remember my first beer. That second goal was fucking amazing. Can’t wait for the next game in front of 273 supporters along with the thousands of free tickets. Vamos el Dynamo Internazionale Zagrebia!!!!
Bravo Dinamo.
Great game to watch. Lead up to the first goal some great passing and the second goal was a beauty.
DINAMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Huge goal!!
#noshame
hahaha…well I guess some of us Dinamo fans are satisfied with the result…
BTW…I heard the BBB ended up in jail…now that’s two shitty things that happened to the BBB fanboy group in the same day!
oh well….maybe next game Dinamo can play four Croatians…that would be so cool!
See, never a doubt with Europski dinamo.
Ziva,
Not shocked. Guess which angel let him back on the team?
Pivaric forgot to jump… Could have headed it away.
True…Machado should be benched….
nice goal by the Albanci!
If the econmy was working in Cro a person like Pupovac would be marginalized. What could bitch about if the serbs in Cro had jobs and the same pay. He is like Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton with the Afr-American community in the US. He only pops up when there is a self-serving interest. For the likes of Jackson, Sharpton and even Pupovac in Cro, they need and prefer the status quo because that keep them in the public eye.
Forget about the three hrvati playing. I can’t believe Machado is still on the roster. The dude gave the fans an F.U. and he is still playing.
@ Slavonac
I don’t think it is that they don’t care, they are tired of it….frankly, I suspect if the economy were booming, people were working, they would pay a lot more attention to these types of things…this based on my discussions with relatives over there anyway.
….in Dinamo “yellow”
3 Croatians on the field.
Basketball team looking good against Lithuania. Again, it is a meaningless game, but have to be encouraging going forward with Eurobasket a few weeks away.
Slavonija has been dead for years and I can tell you first hand, almost every industry has been screwed. The farmers are srtuggling, factories have shut down or down sized, Djuro Djakovic used to employ so many people in Slavonski Brod…now only a fraction are employed…government contracts are often not paid, families add levels or build on their land so their kids end up living there once they get married, Slavonija has it pretty bad and yet they somehow survive.
the war you mentioned should be a political war, not physical. I see so many challenges those people have to face and yet, anytime someone gets into power, they never stick to their word and there’s usually another scandal or lack or accountability through every part of that country.
the Vukovar distraction is really a joke but that motherfucker Pupovac continues to ride that old pro Serb victim train by trying to equalize the victims and aggressors in Knin and Krajina area while he clearly demonized those that died on the Krizni Put and in Bleiburg.
for the celebration of Oluja…Pupovac said “real reconciliation won’t happen until all victims are equally mentioned”…..and yet when Croatia mourns and commemorates the victims of Bleiburg…he says he “condemns the politics of equalization of victims”….so our victims were not as important the so called Serb victims in Knin and some parts of that region.
The thing that really pisses me off about all this is that all of this is regularly printed in side notes of the media and yet, nobody seems to care!
That is why, half joking, half seriousness, I keep saying Cro needs another war to teach common sense. This is what happens when the criminals and those who don’t give a shit about the country and only thmeselves are allowed to run the country. Anyone with a brain or skills is leaving or thinking about leaving.
That is why all this other stuff taking place in the government is a huge distraction. This whole thing with the situation in Vukovar and the cirilica is nothing but a distraction. I’m not sure what the laws are about ethnic minorities in Cro, but the cirilica issue is way down the list of items that are important. I thought I read that if a ethnic group had a certain percentage living in an opcina or zupanija they were entitled to have public signs in their language. Again, not sure if true. But, the point is that this is not a major issue and should not be. Hrvati in Cro have proven they can live with serbs. In parts of BiH the hrvati are asking for the same thing, especially in jointly run schools where the muslims (bosnjaci) and croatian kids attend. Cro parents want their kids to be taught proper croatian, which is fine. Now, I know BiH is different because hrvati are not considered an ethnic minority, they are considered equal with the serbs and muhjos.
The fircken politicians should worry more about brining jobs to Slavonija and who gives a shit about public signs. Great the signs are down…….so what does it mean? Nothing, Pero the hrvat from Vukovar and Dusan the serb from Vukovar still don’t have a steady job.
hmmm…
I’ve become so frustrated with the Mamic drama and hope for the sake of those that can’t cheer for Dinamo because of him…I’d like to see him gone, one way or another.
my fear is that if he does eventually go, whats next?
Ziva…I was reading this guys blog, Luka Misetic…and when I go through and see some of his finding about the Croatian government, politicians, laws and lack-thereof…I seriously feel Croatia is not on track for a good future in any organization.
http://miseticlaw.blogspot.co.uk/
nope and nope.
Who knows when the trial with Mamic will begin. Not uncommon for that to be a year down the road. I just hope the circus continues. In a perfect world Mamic will get convicted and serve what ever short amount of time in jail and then he returns back to Dinamo and savez like nothing happend. In a legit county and legit savez, Mamic would have been suspended and removed from daily functions until the case was resolved one way or another. But, not in Cro. So, with Cro being Cro, I fully expect him to remain in power even if convicted.
Remember, this is the same savez that did nothing when a player died on the pitch due to unacceptable conditions. They have no will to change.
From my perspective it is good theater.
BTW…I was away for a couple of weeks and was wondering if there’s been any new developments about the swastika?
any new news on the Mamic’s crime investigation?
@hammer…..to clarify, where am I all over the place on soccer comments? Be specific.
@hammer………..nope, I just happen to have a lot of “takes” that you and others don’t agree with and most fans claim someone is a “hater” when they say something that others don’t agree with. When we talk about sports on this site, none of my takes are out of the ordinary. A reasonable minded person can see what I am saying, they might not agree with it, but a reasonable and open-minded person can walk away thinking that it is not anything crazy that was posted about sports.
I’ll give you an example. Last year when the WC draw was announced, my immediate reaction was that it was a very bad draw for us because Brazil and Mexico were the favorites to get out of the group and they probably would. I explained why I thought so and right away there were some on this site claiming I had no idea what I was talking about, that I was a hater, blah, blah, blah. Eventually, I let my emotions get the best of me and I decided to out money on Cro to get by Mexico even though my head was telling me and everyone I was hearing within the Cro camp in Brazil was that we would fall apart in a must win game. I went with my heart instead of logic.
So, I don’t write anything here that is so far out of nowhere when we discuss sports. I just offer a different opinion that many times the homers don’t like to hear even if it is an accurate assessment or close to one of the situation.
Plus, for someone who “says a whole lot of nothing” I sure do draw a fair share of comments directed my way. Every time I decide to pull away from this site, I get brought up. I keep telling people to skip my post when they see my name, but that doesn’t work either. So, I’m asked to com back and continue with the commentary. Some of you guys may “hate” me, and honestly I don’t know why you would hate someone based on reading a message board, but you sure do enjoy engaging we me on the site. Which is cool. It’s all good. I’ve always said drinks are on me.
@maminjo
Good points.
Don’t eat that North ‘merican swine!
@Soul Champ
I believe Ziva Istina says a whole lot of nothing when it comes to sport.
@Ziva Istina
You asked the question, “aren’t we supposed to get along?”
Then you ask, “How can we get along or not get along when we don’t know each other?” So I’ll ask you, are we supposed to get along? You do the same thing when you make soccer comments, you’re all over the place.
@Poglavnik
Don’t listen to the propaganda.
Prsut is a lean meat, and it is not classified as red meat (it’s low in myoglobin). It’s beneficial to your diet (go ahead and ask a nutritionist or naturopath).
Most ‘swine’ as you put it, are not raised in battery cages nor fed antibiotics, plus they are opportunist eaters meaning that their digestive system is capable of handling a wide array of foods (especially protein)…unlike chickens and cows who are force-fed protein, but are not genetically meant to be eating it.
Considering how brutal inorganic beef and poultry has become in North America (which still doesn’t hold a candle to how bad things have gotten with farmed seafood), pork (especially prsut) is probably one of the safest meats you could eat.
@ Ante B
You forgot the most important one, soccer club. That leads me to another tangent, what up with Croatian soccer clubs in America. That complete disinterest from he regular American Croat is pretty crazy to me. You guys are missing out on a big part of the diaspora experience
For all you Canadians TSN5 is televising the Dinamo game tomorrow.
Prsut is bad news boys!
Lay off the swine!
@ Bobby V
Svaka čast brate.
Kovačić ready in one year. Will flourish with Real Madrid.
Halilovic ready in 2. Needs to get two seasons on loan to get consistent minutes.
@ Hammer
You believe Ziva makes simple sport statements ?
@ Svima
Dalmatinski pršut je najbolje.
Can’t get along??????? We disagree. That doesn’t mean we don’t get along. I don’t know the guy, I don’t know you. How could we get along or not get along when we don’t know each other. This is a message board. We exchange opinions. I don’t take offense to what others write. I find it hard to believe other would take offense to what they read on a message board either.
@Ziva Istina
“I thought this webiste was to unite and not divide.”
You thought wrong. You and Soul Champ can’t even get along when you’re talking sport. This site is what it is, it shouldn’t be taken seriously. It’s still good fun though.
My father was on the board of RWB Adria in Chicago, who won many labor day tournaments and had the great Eusebio play for us one year.
As for Kovacic, I said at the time he joined Inter that it wasn’t that right fit. Inter was never about developing players – it was always a squad of established stars slightly past their prime.
He was, however, named best player on the pitch in several matches for them. Not bad for a player his age.
I also said about 2 years ago that in five years, Croatia will have one of the most talented midfields in Europe.
That was before Rakitic had his standout season with Sevilla and before he joined Barca.
No other country (other than Spain) can say that they have four midfielders under contract with the 2 best clubs in the World.
Modric and Rakitic have arrived. Kovacic and Halilovic will both be ready in 3 years.
Pittsburgh used to have a real strong Cro community. My grandparents and mom lived in a neighborhood called Mala Jaska but the Penn DoT tore most of it down, including St. Nicholas (the first Cro catholic church in the States) down to widen a highway. Most of the remaining Cro community is split between a few different clubs or has either died out or grew into third and fourth generations.
“Shit, I’ve had people on this website say they would punch me if they ever met me. Now think about that for a second. We have losers who are willing to get violet (or at least make the claim they will) because they disagree with what is posted on a message board.”
Yeah there is some ridiculousness.
I remember a couple of years ago there was some wanker who was going to contact my university and try and have my phd candidature ruined because he didnt like my comments.
rofl.
takes all sorts i guess.
Now, onto truly important world news:
anyone aware yet of whether or not Croatia will feature in FIFA 16 ? I know Ziva is anxious to find out ?>
Damn.
I dont come on for a day or so and it looks like i miss all the fun !
oh well
Ziva, your bromance quotes about Cheney and Rumsfeld and Bush are great satire! Always brings a smile to my dial ! Thanks buddy !
I drove through there a couple of weeks back while going on vacation to the Okanagan…not much there!
@Slavonac
That’s right!
They used to have a sign about it up there but I think it’s gone now.
Still think of that movie every time I drive through there.
Weren’t kids from our generation just so much cooler than today?!
Kids these days can’t even wipe their own asses without a consent form..
Rambo one “First Blood” was filmed here in Hope, BC…a great movie!
@Armada
2nd movie I ever saw in the theatre was Rambo part 2.
Still a classic in my mind!
Was only 6 years old too.
Now that’s what I call my old man NOT failing me!
They can think it…but with you they know it. You leave them little doubt.
hahaha….and you wonder why so many people think you’re an idiot?!?!
If it smells like govno, looks like govno, talks like govno then it is. Diras drek vise smrdi. Again who needs serbs? If they said that, good for them.
Ante…your victim attitude really sucks balls dude!
I don’t know anybody that has attacked more people on here than you have…to then cry about being picked on is a fucking joke….
smece….you are the epitome of a that Ante…a loser that wants to belong…just like your buddies from San Pedro told me!
SHAME!!!!
come on people, be fair, many of you have gone after Slavonac from Canada with some nasty comments directed towards him, he just returned the favor, you get what you dish out
Who needs Serbs when you smece like that who goes to personal family insults. I don’t care about the picture or when he goes after me personally, I’m used to it. He’s shown us his true colors way before
I’ll also add one more thing, I also think Ante BBB can be a dumbass on here from time to time but it seems like you have the ability and willingness to take it to another level.
Congrats and adios from me …
I wouldn’t say it bothers me as much as it makes me laugh tbh. Laugh in a sad kind of way that a grown man with kids would resort to something like that.
But hey, carry on with whatever makes you happy.
hahaha…Armada…you’re better than I am…I don’t let things go as easily as you do!
@ Slavonac
I don’t want to get in the middle of things here, just that you guys prompted me to watch Napolean Dynamite videos at work here and I figured I would share some Uncle Rico quotes for a laugh or two.
You and Ante are good dudes. Agree to disagree and move on. Once upon a time I felt like I always butted headed with Ante (or maybe it was another “Ante”) but we’re good now.
sure did…does that somehow bother you?
Lol at means of criticism.
Correct me if I’m wrong but did you not just link a personal photo from Facebook of a random guy on here. And you are the one saying you played at a so called high level.
Actually Slavonac did post who he played for. I get the feeling many here do not like him because he can take on anyone and always wins the debates. He doesn’t just throw the same crap out like so many do on this site.
Stay strong Slavonac, many here wanna take you down.
Bog i Hrvati
I reckon… you know a lot about… cyberspace? You ever come across anything… like time travel?
You’re stealing his thunder Armada. We need to be told again in the next three minutes
How much you wanna make a bet I can throw a football over them mountains?… Yeah… Coach woulda put me in fourth quarter, we would’ve been state champions. No doubt. No doubt in my mind.
Thanks Ziva…I knew that if I ever revealed my soccer past that people like Ante, who’ve never accomplished anything would try to use it as a means of criticism when in fact, anybody that knows who I am knows about my soccer and my personality…
I was in that N American Tournament when we won it in ’93…the majority of our team were Hrvati, with maybe 3 others…while we watched in amazement how most other teams had few Hrvati…we killed Hamilton in the finals…I think it was 5-0!
No I have never heard of him, what team does he play for on FIFA?
Anonymous…ever heard of Diego Maradona? the best player in my era…won many trophies without a stacked team like Barca…or Real Madrid…Maradona was my hero, as a player!
Well Maradona is just what he calls himself on Xtratime, but maybe that’s because he thinks playing for Vancouver Croatia would afford him the ability to call himself that?
I wouldn’t laugh at being a member of Vancouver Croatia. They have a very good reputation and back in the 90s were the best croatian team in N. America. I remember the one year they actually were invited and showed up to the Croatian tournamant (93, i think), they destroyed every team with ease.
Salavonac can defend himself as we all can. But, I never got the impression he was ever throwing down the “I played at a higher level than you” card. Then again, maybe a missed a few posts where he did. But, this goes to the larger question of how some of you view the game and comment about it. We have guys have have posted in the past that XXX player or XXX team was playing with no heart. As if that can be determined watching a 19-inch computer screen.
News flash for those of you who have never played competitive sports…….you don’t play every match (even pros) with 100% insensity and “heart”. Can’t happen. A player doesn’t approach a World Cup qualifier against San Marino in the same mind frame as a Champions League semifinal opening leg match. And that goes all the way down to the youth and amateur level. You don’t play with the same intensity is BS league match against a bottom tier team as you would in a more meaningful game. So, when I see people comment on here about tactics and how a team or player played, I am often left scratching my head. Are we watching the same game?
Ante…you know shit dude…stick to politics, being a hypocrite and a wannabe fan of a sport you know nothing about!
Vancouver Croatia is not a professional team dummy…
I too know players who played at an actual professional level and never gloated, prided themselves or used it as a claim to fame, especially on a website.
To the above, I prefer Uncle Rico as his nickname but Maradona is fantastic as well.
Vancouver Croatia? Lol.
Relax yourself mate, that’s not that high of a level for you to be talking the shit you do on here but hey whatever floats your boat Maradona.
You know who is “za amerika .. spremni”?????? People like Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld. They love America so much that they are willing to protect the USA by allegedly making up lies and forged narratives to attack another country. All done so we can be safe (and increase the value of defensive contractor stocks). God Bless America!!!
you know…. I never saw a full Rambo movie from beginning to end?
not part of a “za amerika .. spremni” lifestyle, I know…
I responded…go back and look for it I’m not gonna repeat it over and over.
Slavonac / Maradona,
What is the so called high level that you played at anyhow? I think someone asked you here before to which you never really replied too.
No problem internet Rambo.
impossible to get along with a person thats talks big behind a computer screen…I’m hopeful to meet up with him one day. I travel to the US often and may visit him…we’ll then see how big of a talker he is?
hahaha….hilarious dude!
it bothers you that I played the game at a high level and yet, your claim to fame is a BBB fanboy!
nice one!
Guys, guys………..aren’t we supposed to get along? I thought this webiste was to unite and not divide.
Charm was a gift, jersey doesn’t have a name on the back (and one that does was another gift with my own name on the back) which I have said before to you. I don’t hide behind a moniker but I thank you for the man crush. You’re now my personal bit…I mean fanboy.
http://youtu.be/WjXZvcgHIXY
Ante…you jealous?
you can downplay a persons achievements to make yourself feel better…but you’re still that guy that wears a Dinamo charm, been “around” soccer since you were 9, wear a jersey with a name on the back and belong to a fan club…BBB
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10154934359720612&set=a.10150266477715612.537847.869610611&type=1&theater
hahaha…awesome!
Best part of the Cro-Turkey match……The turks have some AMerican guy whose real name is something Bobby Baker and have re-named him Muhammed Ali.
I mean shit, why didn’t we think of this. We could have renamed Da Silva and Sammir and all would have been forgiven.
Well, that is all I brought up. You are putting words in my mouth on this one. My issues is the personal service contracts that he forces upon young kids and their parents. When thry say no, he ends up fucking around with them like he did with Kramaric and Muric.
We all know Mamic will never see jail.
in other news…….nice job by the hoops team today as they get ready for Eurobasket. Bogdanovic played well. I still think he will be the guy who will have to hit the big shots for us in tight games.
Absolutely uncle rico
http://youtu.be/7b8uE1kza-0
Ziva…we both agree the lifetime contracts are ridiculous, immoral and should be outlawed…I think this isn’t even debatable. the thing is, you keep bringing up the same news and almost daily, its tiring dude.
I seriously hope they investigate Mamic and his brother…and entire network…for once and for all! He went to jail and the authorities have had a a decent amount of time while he was away to properly start their investigation…if this ends and he’s free, I hope I never hear the same shit over and over again cause we could do the same with tons of guys in this industry. if he goes away to jail, we can all relax and enjoy as healthy and prosperous Dinamo, that qualifies to the group stages of Champions league every year and we get those BBB off the street and back in the stands where they belong…so Ante and his buddies can sing their songs and throw rocks at opposing fans…possibly get into a brawl and then come home and brag about it on croatiansports.com…right spike?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVNHcob3oJg
That would mean some more research would have to be done but that’s a big no no here. Instead lets just follow what we only find out on the internets.
bravo Slavonac
it never stops with them
Hook, line and sinker. Too easy. Such a joke.
@Slavonac……..nothign wrong on my end with Mamic’s son representing Kovacic. I never said otherwise. But, there is something wrong if he forced Kovacic to sign the same service agreement contract a few years ago that he forced Da Silva and Modric. Da Silava actually won in court and his was ruled illegal. You don’t think that is an issue?
you two make me laugh…as if you didn’t know?!?!
TMZ at its best….headline news…the Mamic’s are gonna make money from Kovacic…fucking criminals making money again…how dare they!?!?
“middle man”??? gimme a damn break…you claim to be a Dinamo fan (we know you’re a BBB fanboy) and yet you didn’t know Mamic had his fingers in this…or are you just having another hissy fit cause you think its newsworthy?
But don’t worry because apparently that’s not important as long as the club continues to produce national team players, makes money “the legal way” and plays every game in front of 273 fans.
That is his agent. Same agent as Modric. Which leads you to also believe that Mamic is getting a kick back beyond the standard agent fee.
Modric is turning over a certain percentage of his salary over to Mamic; this is well known. Can’t confirm if Kovacic is, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he was.
Anybody see who was middle man for the Kovacic deal? One Mario Mamic, son of Zdravko Mamic. Probably means nothing, right?
MelbCro,
Define community. Church, Dom and a big population? Two of three..or where the community is big enough that people notice there at Croatians there? For me, I’ve only experienced that in San Pedro where if you stopped your average Joe, they would definitely know or have heard about Croatia and Croatians.
“I’m a Croat from Yugoslavia”
line of the day right there – multiple people have failed that guy in his life he’s telling people that!
I work in an industry where I deal with Americans daily. Over the course of these past 11 years I’ve met several Croatians in my industry and some crack me up…the worse was a guy in Wichita Kansas that told me he’s a Croat from Yugoslavia…hahaha…I didn’t even bother to correct him, if he has no clue, who am I to tell him what he is.
Pittsburgh has quite a few, but they seem to be at least 3 or 4 generations and none of them know the language. I went for lunch with 2 guys a few years ago…both worked for Heinz at the time and when we started talking about Croatia, it was clear to me that they are Croatian through ancestry but did not know a thing about Croatia…I mean ZERO!
Although I get a bit amused, I don’t hold it against these people…at the very least they seemed to be proud to have a Croatian background…far better than that yahoo from Wichita!
hahaha…MelbCro…that was funny!
Do you guys in America even have communities? I mean actual communities. We know a lot about Croats in Canada but you yanks are a mystery. Some used to even speculate that American Croats were a myth, like bigfoot.
Agreed – prsut is a very serious topic. Miljevacki prsut is definitely the best, not that I’m biased or anything in coming from the home of good prsut. I’ll punch anyone who disagrees online, and I’ll refuse to talk to them for decades. Ha.
listen…. prsut is a SERIOUS topic.
someone tells me Dalmatinski prsut is better than Istarski prsut, we’re throwing down right then and there.
kidding aside, I actually prefer the Dalmatian prsut!
That is everywhere. You can’t force individuals to like each other. Just becasue someone has the same ethnic background doesn’t mean they will get along. Individuals can be pety and hold grudges for crazy reasons.
Shit, I’ve had people on this website say they would punch me if they ever met me. Now think about that for a second. We have losers who are willing to get violet (or at least make the claim they will) because they disagree with what is posted on a message board. I’ve always maintained I’d be the first to buy a drink while others claim they wil resort to violence.
There’s lots of division amongst hrvati everywhere, no matter how small the diaspora community. I remember one town in Spain had only two hrvati living there – but they wouldn’t talk to each other for decades because of some stupid argument about who had the best prsut or something years ago.
fricken ipad…….Susak.
The various regional clubs do no favors to the larger population long term, but I guess people want to be around their own kind.
I might be generalizing here, but here goes…….I think the over-35 or so crowd is much more in tune with what is going on back in Cro, has a much better command of the language and “feels’ more of a hrvat than the U-35 crowd. And I think that is becasue the over-35 crowd were in their teenage years or older when the war was taking place and felt a much deeper connection to home where they were following what was taking place. The under-35 crowd probably didn’t understand the war or pay very close attention to it. Because of that, they have to google when names like Mate Boban, Gojko Susko, Bobetko, etc. are mentioned because they don’t know who they are and in some aspects their parents have failed them. Some of it is due to lazy parenting and some of it is due to assimilation of the local landscape.
this all beckons the question – which metro area in North America has the worst diaspora population?
heard Chicago isn’t that great
I can speak to NY – lots of division, lots of 1st generation kids not in tune with our culture, language, etc.
for example in Queens, we have a bunch of little sport/social clubs where members from one club hate on the other – first off, shouldn’t we have an overall org that everyone is a part of, to unite us? Second, there ain’t too many of US in this country – you really want to distance yourself from a fellow Hrvat for petty bullshit – over a different club or group!?
Which US cities on the East Coast and in the Midwest still have Deseti Travanj events?
Correct…..Canadains much better than their American colleagues.
Looking at it as a diaspora outsider from England and after spending some time on holidays with family/ friends in Cleveland, NY, LA and Toronto/ Mississauga over the years, I always thought the Canadian diaspora hrvati lived closest to a ZDS lifestyle out of anyone in N America. They also do great janjetina in Mississauga…
Anything is possible in that shit hole of a league. The powers that be allow Lokomotiva to compete in the league, so I wouldn’t rule anything out. Although, having the name Europski dinamo II should be self-explanatory.
Cro league produces individual talent, but the league is no good in terms of entertainment and quality. Attendance figures and tv ratings speak to that Hell, we had a kid die in the league due to the lack of quality standards. That should be everything you need to know.
@MelbCro…..I have big respect for the aussie hrvati. They still live the ideals of the “za dom….spremni” lifestyle and always enjoying meeting them up in Cro. For example, they still celebrate 10. travanj. Much of N. America diaspora hrvati ignores that now. You don’t see the diaspora hrvati in N.AMerica turning out to mass on that day or much in general at all. You see less and less first generation children learning the language or knowing anything about the culture or history. It’s not my style to tell people how to live their lives, but when you can’t speak the language, know nothing of your roots and think wearing a jersey with another man’s name on the back during a game makes you a hrvat, well that shows the parents and older generation have failed the younger generation. There are exceptions, but the ones who live the “za dom…spremni” lifestyle are declining and all we have is people making excuses for that.
Just to be clear there is nothing wrong with wearing a jersey (assuming there is no name on the bak), but that makes you a fan, not a hrvat. Much more to be being a hrvat than wearing a jersey.
Thanks @Armada. I thought that was the case but wanted to check.
What’s the betting that if Dinamo II win the druga liga, they “supposedly” split from GNK Dinamo in order to get promoted but forget to change the dinamo email and website links, just like Lokomotiva…
Dinamo II cannot promote since they are directly tied to DZG.
Lokomotiva supposedly “legally” split from Dinamo a few years back.
Key word, supposedly.
So per the rules, no DZG II cannot promote.
Good for our football? No.
Does anyone care? Probably not.
@Marko
It would be good for the league. Brings it financial stability and the players would be paid on time. 🙂
It was good to see that Sibenik got its first win in the druga HNL this week. Really hoping they get back to the top flight next year.
Dinamo II are also doing well however, in their first year in the division. If Dinamo II win the 2.HNL this year, would they be promoted to the prva liga? If so, that means there would be three Dinamos in the 1.HNL, under the same control – GNK Dinamo, Dinamo II, and Lokomotiva. Is that (A) allowed under the league rules, (B) good for CRO football in the long run, or (C) does anyone actually care either way?
zbogggggggggg tebe mi srce stade i jos boli, boli jakoooooo
@ziva
what are you talking about, only two comments last week on the game and you were not one them! (bobby v and colin)
Here is some advice for you, If you don’t appreciate the Prva Liga don’t watch it.
This site is uniting us in talking sport, nothing else. This site works well when we keep it strictly sport.
Medjugorje isn’t recognised by the Holy Roman Catholic Church.
@ MelbCro
Yes Ziva Holiga is of lesser quality.
Unfortunately we have a veliki Hrvati disease in the USA.
Not sure where it stems from ?
Some source of deep insecurity .
While it is a challenge to grow up in a multi – ethnic country, displacing that challenge and shitting on your people is weak.
This site is a Međugorju miracle in uniting Croatians around the world.
Bog i Hrvati
I’m always quite confused about Ziva’s comments about the diaspora, questioning their Croatianess. Its confusing because what he describes is not my experience of the diaspora. But then I remember Ziva’s only experience of the diaspora is America. So what Ziva is actually saying is that American Croats are of a lesser quality. How does his fellow Americans feel about that?
if they really wanted them they would have kept them and found a way…..there are ways around FFP and there are questions if it will be enforced. Rumors of pending changes to it.
they got rid of both of them due to FFP……balancing the books
@Ante…….LOL….damn right.
Now, he leftist media is making this into a big deal. Who the hell doesn’t sing “evo zore, evo dana” at a Cro wedding. Hell, even dispaora hrvati can’t butcher it.
Plus, why did Inter get rid of Shaqiri. Inter should have held on to him as well.
Best impression of the mayor of Vukovar:
“….evooooo zoreeeee evoooo dana.”
@Maminjo……agreed. i said it earlier today. Inter fucked up from the start expecting him to be the central figure and leader of that team. No 19 year old should have that thrown upon them when entering a new league in a new country. They will probably look back in 4 years and wonder why they got rid of him.
Some good points were made by Inter fans about Kovacic’s time at Inter.
They were saying how they won’t ever know what they really had with Kovacic, as Inter stupidly surrounded him with players like Kuzmanovic, Alvarez, Guarin, Cambiasso…none being bad players, but definitely none being super talented. Inter also never even picked up any decent veteran midfielders who could even help him with his development either.
These same Inter fans were VERY upset when they finally bought a quality player in Geoffrey Kondogbia to pair with Kovacic, only for Inter to sell Kovacic immediately after.
Apparently, they sold Kovacic and Shaqiri to comply with Fifa Fair Play rules, and originally didn’t want to sell them. But there were literally no serious buyers for the Inter busts in Ranocchia, Mendel, Guarin, etc. so Kovacic had to go.
I really like Kovacic in La Liga. Just difficult to see him crack the Real lineup on a regular basis. Then again, he was jerked around in different roles at Inter and benched on occasion there as well. Probably better off playing with some quality midfielders where he could actually learn something from, and in a consistent role on the team (even if he only plays 20 games on the season).
Some serious soccer talk now……
If history is a judge of what to expect, Rafa does rotate his squad, especially in the game prior to a really big match. So, that would dictate Kovacic will get some time. Now, if Real would abandon their 4-3-3- formation and go with a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-1-4-1 would Kovacic get a nod in that role.
I still don’t see it, at least not this year unless Bale really struggles and he gets benched.
The old argument is that a team wont sit someone who they spent big money on, but that doesn’t apply to Real since they spend big money on a number of players. James, Bale, Benzema are all worth more than Kovacic. Modric is simply better than him and Kovacic can’t play Kroos’ role.
He will have success at Real. How could you not feeding the ball to Benzema, Ronaldo, James and Bale. But, just how much time will get get this season.
I think most of us are in agreement that we have a very interesting roster for the Euros where we can make some real noise even with our flaws (coach, forwards and left back). It would have been nice for Kovacic to have more minutes leading into the Euros. Then again, more minutes increases the likelihood of injuries.
Look at Barbie Hrvatska’s family tree.
How is Kitarovic from commie blood?
Is it by proxy due to being a part of HDZ? That’s bit of a stretch.
@nyc………..and I was the first to point out that jadan, mali i nemocan hajduk got a gift from the refs last week. See, that is the thing with me. I am fair and unbiased in my commentary. I rip when people and teams should be ripped and I heap prasie when deserved.
@slavonac……yes, favorable calls do happen. I am just pointing out that the Cro league is corrupt which anyone with a brain can see. Europski dinamo without help from the officials still wins the league, i have never said otherwise, but it is clear Mamic has influence. He had control over referee assignment, that came out in court. So, the sranje of the league continues. Plus, don’t mistake what I said about Europski dinamo’s roster. it was a question to the Europski dinamo fans on what they preferred. A team getting smoked in europe with home grown kids or a team with foreigners with slightly better results but still getting smoked in europe. It was a simple question. I never said anything else.
@maminjo…..laziness by all parties. When HDZ was in charge they didn’t do shit for the people of Vukovar either. All politicians in Cro are worthless. You have commies in the SDP and their coalition partners against the former commies wrapped up in the Croatian flag (HDZ). One only has to look at Karamarko and Barbie Hrvatska. They are both from commie blood.
Of course, the Serbian media are losing their minds over this and pushing that neo-Nazi hysteria again, lol.
Mind you, the Croats in Vojvodina never complained when the Serbian education system only allowed them to learn their Croat language using cyrillic-only textbooks.
This is all just political nonsense, going back and forth. Most Croats and Serbs in Slavonia don’t give a shit about any of this and only want jobs. Even Serbs from Serbia don’t even care about cyrillic, yet there is this sudden need for every sign in Slavonia to be posted with it?
The mayor of Vukovar criticized the SDP for creating this drama and hysteria over the past year about the bilingual signs and accused them of irresponsibly organizing all those pro-bilingualism protests in an attempt to gain political points at the expense of creating tensions for citizens of Vukovar.
Like he said…Focus all that money and effort on bringing a factory to Vukovar. All this other bullshit is just SDP laziness and diversions from the real problem.
Be gone with that Cyrillic alphabet.
@ slavonac I am just amazed at the players coming out of Dinamo. I watched so many of them from Modric, corluka, brozovic and Jedvaj to name a few. I was always impressed with Kovacic but have to admit never saw this coming. To land at Madrid with that type of price tag. I hope he succeeds.
I hope they can make champions league play again this year. It would be impressive considering as you point out it is such a small country.
Maminjo….this should have been done a long time ago.
The Vukovar council voted today to get rid of the Cyrillc alphabet from being used on street signs.
Yes NYC but recently we have a few guys that complain Dinamo isn’t playing enough Croatians and then saying they’d rather lose with Croatians than play at all….hahaha…and although I do agree with them to a certain point, I wouldn’t go as far to say I’d rather they lose with Croatians and not make it to Champions League.
This topic is such a catch 22…Dinamo have produced more players than anyone in the past 10 years, they’ve qualified for the group stage in the Champions League 2 out of the past 4 or 5 years…thats HUGE for such a small country and the money they get is also a massive amount…and yet, the peanut gallery expects a tiny country with approximately 4.3 million to qualify for the top 32 European teams…teams that have way better sponsorships and leagues….and then they point out the losses as if the Mamic’s should be doing better….
your damned if you buy imports and your damned if you do piss all in Europe…
nyc,
All that means to me is that a) possibly nobody watched the game or b) didn’t watch the game. I bet the number of people who watch HNL on a weekly basis here is miniscule.
@Ante B.
not complaining at all, just pointing out something, love when Colin writes about the HNL, what is interesting is last week only two comments and no one complained about the clear cut Hajduk penalty, however anything with Dinamo and you have a bunch of on here who have to post and of course accuse mamic for everything, very amusing to say the least
I appreciate the HNL, of course it is is not the La liga but these are our future NT players, it is a Croatian League and for that I support it
nyc,
The guys who started this site have always promoted that it was a for us and by us site for the dijaspora meaning that all submissions would be posted. You’ve been vocal about an agenda here. Why not take the boys up on their offer and write your own analysis/articles? It’s easier than complaining. Just a thought.
NYC…you’re right dude, people see what they want to see!
BTW…when are the Mamic’s going to jail?
Colin,
Do you know if they (Dinamo) did the moment of silence for Tomo? Originally they were but then they decided not to because the family asked them not to since there’s no official confirmation. I wasn’t in town this weekend and didn’t catch the game.
(Btw Dedic passed away today.)
Ziva,
how often do we see Juventus get favorable calls…or Barca…or Bayern…or Brazil in the WC, or Italy, or Man U…
come on man…this happens daily and you point out this shit as if its new in the sport…
@slavonac,
what is really funny is last week hajduk clearly committed a foul in the last minute of the game and it should of been a penalty against hajduk, instead they get the win and three points
clearly does not fit the narrative for some people on this site as they remain silent, oh well
A no call on handball in a 0-0 game is worthy especially when 1. you factor in that Mamic has had control over referee assignments in the past (nobody can dispute that as that was proven already) and 2. the favorable amount of PK calls that go in Europski dinamo’s favor in domestic games.
I don’t care if Europski dinamo wins or loses (unless I bet on the game), but failing to include the moment that changed the game is a mistake when compiling a match report. The homers sure point out the bogus call that went in Brazil’s favor at the World Cup last year. Should that not be mentioned either when discussing the game. If Communist Klub Split makes the PK, we have a different game. They bunker the rest of the way or hold on for a tie and they are still in first.
Was it the defining moment? Nope. But, it was one of the story lines of the game. If the refs are not going to call that against Europski dinamo, then they never should. Just shows you how bad the league is…..but we already knew that.
your report is good Colin, Ziva is trying to say the win was fixed and that his inside sources know exactly how Mamic got away with it.
remember, you cannot like Dinamo because of the Mamic’s…it’s only ok to like BBB and….anything that goes wrong is because Mamic fixed it that way!
so if Dinamo do not make it to Champions league group stage, its a failure…and if they do make it to Group stage…its still a failure!
I watch every Dinamo, Hajduk, and Rijeka match as well as whatever other game is on while I’m not doing anything else. If a missed call because of a handball didn’t make it in the report, I didn’t think it was important enough to make it in the report. Everything else I didn’t write about is conveniently in those neat little highlight videos I post for ya.
If a player misses a penalty, that’s important, if a ref didn’t call a penalty, I don’t have time to scrutinize everything a ref does. This was already something like 1,110 words long.
just a thrilling HNL season so far
who’s ready for some early season wagers?
over under on:
Dinamo winning the league by 1-10 points
Dinamo winning the league by 10+
Dinamo winning the league by 20+
Question for you…………….Do you actually watch the games or just read the various reports because I find it very odd you would leave out the biggest detail of the first half and the missed/blown PK call that should have gone against Europski dinamo if you had watched the match? It was a clear hand ball as the hand of the Europski dinamo player was not in a natural position.