Hajduk let two-goal lead slip in 2-2 draw at Istra 1961
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Hajduk Split let a two-goal lead slip in Pula on Monday, drawing 2-2 with Istra 1961 in round 11 of the SuperSport HNL. Hajduk led through goals from Khalil Fayad and Michele Šego, but Istra pulled level from the penalty spot late on.
Fayad's volley and Šego's finish
Hajduk took the lead in the 7th minute, Index.hr reports. After a corner, Marešić headed the ball down and Fayad hit a scissor-kick volley into the left corner, Hajduk.hr says in its match report.
Fayad turned provider for the second. In the 54th minute he went down the left and delivered a pass that Šego put away from close range.
Istra respond
Istra scored in the 66th minute. Emil Frederiksen got down the right and played the ball into the six-yard area, where Hamza Jaganjac got in front of Hajduk's Hadžikadunić to score. The game opened up. Goalkeeper Kolić saved a Šego shot after a run through the middle, and Hajduk.hr's match log says VAR would probably have ruled it offside had it gone in.
Index's live updates say orange smoke from the stand where Hajduk's Torcida supporters were interrupted play for about four minutes.
The penalty
Referee Patrik Kolarić gave Istra a penalty after Roko Gabrić, who had just come on as a substitute, pulled Nasraoui's shirt at a corner. Frederiksen scored from the spot. Index puts the penalty in the 79th minute; Hajduk.hr's match log has it at 81. Eight minutes of stoppage time were signalled, but neither side scored again.
Cabello: "I knew they would get tired"
Istra coach Javier Cabello said he was happy for his players and the fans, and that Istra showed character to come back. He described two different halves, Hajduk better in the first and Istra with the right mentality in the second, according to Index. Hajduk had played in the Conference League the previous Thursday.
"I knew they would get tired because they had played in Europe." Original: "Znao sam da će se umoriti jer su igrali Europu." (Cabello, via Index)
Table and a criticism
Hajduk were on 23 points after the match, and Istra were sixth with 13, according to Index. Dinamo's win over Rijeka the next day cut Hajduk's lead to a point.
On MAXSport's Studio SHNL, former Hajduk captain Hrvoje Vejić criticised substitute Carlos Martin, who replaced Abdoulie Sanyang Bamba in the 76th minute. Sportske novosti quotes him on Martin, a 24-year-old on loan from Atlético Madrid: "Another huge disappointment. He has shown nothing since he arrived." (Original: "Opet ogromno razočaranje. Otkad je došao, nije pokazao ništa.") That is Vejić's opinion, not a finding of fact.
Hajduk next host Gorica at Poljud on Saturday, per Hajduk.hr.
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