HNK Rijeka dismantled league leaders Hajduk Split 3-0 at Rujevica in the first Adriatic derby of the season, extending their dominance in the fixture to six consecutive wins. The three points are key for the team, which now sits fifth in the HNL with 11 points from six matches.
Thiago Dantas opened the scoring in the 35th minute, and Samuel Vignato added a second in first-half stoppage time. David Adu Adjei, who assisted the first two goals, sealed the deal in the 57th minute, becoming the team's top scorer this season with three goals. Hajduk arrived at Rujevica as league leaders on an 11-match unbeaten run but failed to end their poor streak at this ground.
The Rijeka coach said after the match that the team played excellently. This victory marks Rijeka's sixth win in the last eight meetings with Hajduk, with an aggregate score of 15-0 in their favour. Hajduk's last win at Rujevica was in November 2022.
With this win, Rijeka cut the gap to leaders Hajduk to five points, with a game in hand. The team's current form is strong, with three wins and two draws in their last five league matches.
The next challenge for the Whites is an away trip to face NK Slaven Belupo on October 10th, who currently sit eighth in the table. The preparation schedule can be found on the fixtures page.
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The club confirmed that 7,848 spectators attended the match at the Stadion HNK Rijeka for the 8th round fixture. According to our verified data, Rijeka is now in 5th place with 14 points from 7 games, with a goal tally of 13 scored and 7 conceded. They now trail leaders Dinamo Zagreb by just two points. The Whites are in excellent form with three wins and two draws in their last five league matches.
Former coach Radomir Đalović praised Rijeka's tactical preparation for the 3-0 win over Hajduk. "Kek tactically played a phenomenal match. Rijeka played smart above all," Đalović said for JutroSK. He highlighted that Hajduk has not won at Rujevica for almost four years. Đalović also stated that Rijeka has the quality to fight for the title. According to our verified data, Rijeka is in 5th place with 14 points and trails leaders Dinamo by two points.
The club posted a clip of the first derby goal on its social media with the caption "Just out of habit...". Many have interpreted this post as a provocation following the 3-0 victory over Hajduk at Rujevica. Rijeka is in fifth place with 14 points, just two points behind leaders Dinamo, and has recorded three wins and two draws in its last five matches.
