Bosančić Yearns for Poljud
Former Hajduk player reveals desire to play in Split after Žalgiris' heavy defeat, but faces suspension due to yellow cards.
Former Hajduk player reveals desire to play in Split after Žalgiris' heavy defeat, but faces suspension due to yellow cards.
Petar Bosančić, the defender for Lithuanian side Žalgiris and a former Hajduk player, hopes to feature at Poljud in the return leg of the third qualifying round of the Conference League, despite the threat of suspension from three yellow cards. "Honestly, I don't know if I'll play given the three cards. I hope the rules have changed. I'd love to play the match at Poljud with gusto, whatever the result," Bosančić told Sportklub after his team was convincingly beaten 5:2 by Hajduk in Vilnius on Thursday.
Bosančić did not hide his disappointment after the heavy home defeat. "A convincing and deserved win for Hajduk. We started the match with two naive mistakes, two penalties. Thank God Hajduk didn't score both. Then we equalized, but the match went in the wrong direction for us. We move on," he said.
When asked directly if he was disappointed with the final outcome, he honestly added: "After conceding five goals, of course. Hajduk are the favorites; we have to be realistic. We tried to neutralize that, to play well on our turf... But the match went that way; there's nothing else to do but prepare for the return leg."
Despite his team's heavy loss, Bosančić was pleasantly surprised by the reaction of the home fans, who sent the Žalgiris players off with prolonged singing and support. "At first, it was strange to me. I'm used to a slightly different relationship with fans. The fans here are truly supportive," he revealed.
He also explained the context of that closeness: "The club went through a tough period last year, through certain changes that our fans were calling for. They're with us, through all the hard and good times. They only ask for a fight on the pitch, and the result will be what it will be. It's really pleasant."
The Split side, with a convincing win in Vilnius, ended a six-year drought without an away victory in European competitions. Michele Šego scored twice, finding the net from a penalty in the fifth minute and from a free kick over 20 meters out in the 44th minute. Hajduk's third goal came from Adrion Pajaziti in the 56th minute, the fourth from Dalisson de Almeida in the 73rd, and the fifth from Rokas Pukštas two minutes later. In stoppage time, a goal by Marin Šotiček for 6:2 was disallowed for offside against Marko Livaja.
For the home side, the scorers were Nikola Petković in the 34th minute and former Hajduk player Marko Capan in the 86th. The return leg will be played in a week at Poljud, where Hajduk will try to confirm their place in the Conference League playoffs.
