Varaždin defeated Hajduk 2:1 in the opening round of the SuperSport HNL, with the victory made all the sweeter by the fact that five home players once wore the Split club's jersey in their youth.
On Sunday, August 4, 2026, Varaždin defeated Hajduk 2:1 on their home turf in the first round of the SuperSport HNL. The match was marked by a dramatic finish in which home goalkeeper Josip Silić saved a penalty from Marko Livaja in the 90th minute, and the story gains an extra layer of intrigue from the fact that five Varaždin players once came through Hajduk's youth academy.
The most intriguing story involves 20-year-old midfielder Ivan Canjuga. Ten years ago, at the invitation of the then-head of Hajduk's Academy, he arrived in Split for a trial. He spent two weeks there, after which his parents were told that, despite being 'skilled on the ball,' he was simply too small in stature to continue his career at the Split club.
His football journey continued at Varaždin, then as a cadet he moved to Lokomotiva, only to return to his parent club last winter. Coach Šafarić found a place for him in the holding midfield role, and today he is one of the team's key players. Against Hajduk, he shone again, assisting Mario Mladenovski for Varaždin's first goal.
Besides Canjuga, the match-winner Luka Mamić, who was at Hajduk until his junior years, and striker Ivan Mamut also share a Hajduk past. Mamut was in the same generation as Croatian international Nikola Vlašić and has often pointed out that in the youth categories, everything revolved around him.
Neither Škaričić nor Luka Posinković, who also came through the Split academy, got a chance in Hajduk's first team. Interestingly, the hero of the match, goalkeeper Josip Silić, brother of Hajduk's goalkeeper Toni Silić, was never part of the Split club. His football path is tied exclusively to Dugopolje.
The match was also marked by a major refereeing controversy in the closing stages. In the 88th minute, referee Patrik Kolarić initially awarded an indirect free kick to Hajduk and booked the visiting striker for simulation. However, after an intervention from the VAR room, where Igor Pajač and Luka Pušić were stationed, Kolarić reviewed the footage and changed his decision.
In the audio recording of the communication that was released, Kolarić can be heard requesting a detailed review:
"Give me the full, give me the full. Give it to me at full speed. I see the knee. I'll overturn the yellow card and award a penalty, okay."
The head of Croatian referees, Bertrand Layec, published the referee analysis of the first round on Tuesday, fully supporting the VAR intervention and the final decision. In its analysis, the Referee Commission highlighted several key elements:
"the defender does not touch the ball," "the movement of the defender's right leg relative to the attacker's leg is clear and constitutes an obstruction," and "the contact with the attacker's leg is evident."
After the match, one of my fellow journalists humorously noted that Varaždin fans were chanting "Hajduk whores!" and wondered whether those shouts were directed at Mamut, Mamić, and Škaričić, players who were once part of the Split club.
The scorers for Varaždin were Mario Mladenovski and Luka Mamić, while Rokas Pukštas scored the only goal for Hajduk. Nevertheless, all the attention after the match was focused on Josip Silić, who saved Livaja's penalty in the 90th minute, securing his team's first three points of the new season.
