Slaven Belupo and Rijeka drew 1:1 in the first leg of the Croatian Cup final.
The final in Croatia will be played over two legs, and Radomir Đalović's Rijeka will have a chance to win the cup on home soil, in the second leg on May 29th.
It would be the first trophy for Đalović in his career as a head coach - he also has a chance to win the title, as he has a point ahead of second-placed Dinamo with two rounds remaining.
Rijeka took the lead in Koprivnica in the 25th minute through Croatian international Toni Fruk, and Slaven equalized in the 69th minute through Antonio Bosec.
"The first half is over. As for the game, we scored a goal on time, we stood our ground in the first half. We were stable. However, we had problems because Rukavina received a yellow card. We started the second half great, we had chances to practically solve everything with a second goal. However, Slaven showed that he is quality, they equalized, we had problems on the left side. We unconsciously retreated, we created some situations for ourselves. The result is active. I hope we will be even better at Rujevica and win the Cup," said Đalović.
Rijeka plays a key match in the championship on Sunday against Hajduk at Poljud.
"You saw today that the Slaven players were fresher because they rested over the weekend. We didn't spare anyone. It won't be like that at Poljud either. We'll see who can do it. I congratulate my players, they are the ones most deserving of all this. That they are in the Cup final and that we have an active result ahead of the second leg and that with two rounds left they have everything in their hands. Now, we'll see if it will be one or both trophies. We're going full force. No one complained about Poljud, but we'll see the day after the game," said the Rijeka coach.
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