Hajduk Split vs Rudes Prediction: Without Livaja, Hajduk are a different, much weaker team

Six years ago, on the same date (November 4), also on Saturday evening, Rudes registered their only victory in Poljud (3:2). The only one, but such a big one, with serious consequences for Hajduk. Hajduk and Rudes meet in the match of the 14th round of the SuperSport HNL in Poljud on Saturday at 20:10. Rudes still have no victory in the domestic championship, and Toni Golem's team collected only three points from three draws, but they beat Slaven Belupo in the Cup and thus made a good overture for Hajduk. Mislav Karoglan, manager of Hajduk, does not have an ideal situation. Against the last-placed team in the championship, he will be missing three of his best players - Marko Livaja, Filip Krovinovic, and Dario Melnjak.

Form: WWLLW

Last season's top scorer in HNL, Marko Livaja, scored six goals for Hajduk this season and assisted two more. He went through a drought of more than 700 minutes, and this weekend he will take a break against Rudes. This usually means a problem for the "White". They are not the same team without him, and that was seen in the last game, away to Rujevica, where Hajduk lost 2-0. At the same time, they played for the first time without Filip Krovinovic, and now neither he nor Dario Melnjak are there. Livaja and Krovinovic received their third yellow card in the last league match against Slaven Belupo. It was the seventh game since Livaja's arrival in Hajduk in February 2021 in which he did not play, and the team won only once without him. And that was an away match against fourth-division Tehnicar in the Cup. Hajduk are in 2nd place with 3 points less than Rijeka and 2 more than Dinamo. They started the season furious, but now their form dropped. In the last match at home, they were defeated by Osijek, and now the atmosphere in the team is really tense and a win here will be most welcomed.

Form: WDDLL

It is natural that Rudes coach Toni Golem will lead his team with the basic idea of trying to get one point at Poljud with the “parking the bus” tactic, which could be treated as a victory. Rudes are by far the worst team in the league, without a win after 13 matches. Sure, they knew how to make huge surprises in the past, but the situation now is different, they just don’t have the quality to compete in the best league in Croatia. As visitors, they have only a draw and 5 defeats with a goal difference of 2:13. 

With all due respect to football as a sport, and to the ball, which can be fickle, one has to wonder if it is possible for Hajduk to be afraid of Rudes. It's not about underestimating the new Super League team, but about the greatness of the Split’s club, which regardless of weakness, i.e., the absence of three aces, simply have to win, win three points, and do so in a superior way. Hajduk started this season with a huge ambition to finally end Dinamo’s dominance and win the trophy. After two defeats in a row, Hajduk won in the last league match 1:0 away to Slaven Belupo. However, the situation in the club and among the fans is tense and a confident win in this match is something they need at this moment.