2014–15 Croatian First Football League

MAXtv Prva Liga

Season	2014–15
Champions	Dinamo Zagreb
Relegated	Zadar
Champions League	Dinamo Zagreb
Europa League	Rijeka Hajduk Split Lokomotiva
Matches played	180
Goals scored	519 (2.88 per match)
Top goalscorer	Andrej Kramarić (21)
Biggest home win	Hajduk Split 6–0 Zadar Rijeka 6–0 Lokomotiva
Biggest away win	NK Zagreb 0–6 Lokomotiva
Highest scoring	Hajduk Split 5–3 Istra 1961
Average attendance	2,733
← 2013–14 2015–16 → All statistics correct as of 30 May 2015[1].

The 2014–15 Croatian First Football League (officially known as the MAXtv Prva Liga for sponsorship reasons) was the 24th season of the Croatian First Football League, the national championship for men's association football teams in Croatia, since its establishment in 1992. The season started on 18 July 2014 and ended on 30 May 2015.

The league was contested by 10 teams. Dinamo Zagreb were the defending champions, having won their ninth consecutive title in 2013–14.

Teams

The following is a complete list of teams who will contest the 2014–15 Prva HNL.

Zagreb

Istra 1961

Hajduk
RNK Split

Osijek

S. Belupo

Rijeka

Zadar

Zagreb clubs:

Dinamo
Lokomotiva
NK Zagreb

Locations of teams in 2014–15 Prva HNL

Stadia and locations

Stadium	City	Home club	Licensed club(s)	Capacity
Maksimir	Zagreb	Dinamo Zagreb		38,079[2]
Poljud	Split	Hajduk Split		34,448[3]
Gradski vrt	Osijek	Osijek		22,050[4]
Kantrida	Rijeka	Rijeka		12,600[5]
Aldo Drosina	Pula	Istra 1961		10,000[6]
Kranjčevićeva	Zagreb	Zagreb	Lokomotiva	8,850[7]
Stanovi	Zadar	Zadar		6,000[8]
Park mladeži	Split	RNK Split		4,075[9]
Gradski stadion	Koprivnica	Slaven Belupo		3,134[10]

Personnel and kits

Team	Manager	Captain	Kit manufacturer	Shirt sponsor
Dinamo Zagreb	Mamić, ZoranZoran Mamić	Ademi, ArijanArijan Ademi	Puma	—
Hajduk Split	Vukas, HariHari Vukas	Maloča, MarioMario Maloča	Macron	Tommy
Istra 1961	Pamić, IgorIgor Pamić	Obšivač, JureJure Obšivač	Errea	—
Lokomotiva	Pinčić, MarkoMarko Pinčić	Musa, MarioMario Musa	Nike	—
Osijek	SzuszakIvo Šušak	Kurtović, HrvojeHrvoje Kurtović	Jako	—
Rijeka	Kek, MatjažMatjaž Kek	Knežević, DarioDario Knežević	Jako	—
Slaven Belupo	CzacicAnte Čačić	Grgić, MatoMato Grgić	Adidas	Belupo
RNK Split	Vulić, ZoranZoran Vulić	Zagorac, DanijelDanijel Zagorac	Jako	Skladgradnja
Zadar	SztimacIgor Štimac	Jerbić, JureJure Jerbić	Lotto	Hotel Kolovare
NK Zagreb	Kopić, ŽeljkoŽeljko Kopić	Jurendić, JosipJosip Jurendić	Kappa, Jako[11]	—

Managerial changes

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Replaced by	Date of appointment	Position in table
NK Zagreb	Lokica, VjekoslavVjekoslav Lokica	Contract expired	18 May 2014[12]	Kopić, ŽeljkoŽeljko Kopić	9 June 2014[13]	Pre-season
Zadar	Milin, FerdoFerdo Milin	Resigned	25 August 2014[14]	Blažević, MiroslavMiroslav Blažević	1 September 2014[15]	9th
Slaven Belupo	Scoria, ElvisElvis Scoria	Sacked	30 October 2014[16]	CzacicAnte Čačić	4 November 2014[17]	10th
RNK Split	Matić, IvanIvan Matić	Removed from position	23 December 2014[18]	Vulić, ZoranZoran Vulić	23 December 2014[18]	6th
Zadar	Blažević, MiroslavMiroslav Blažević	Resigned	2 January 2015	SztimacIgor Štimac	7 January 2015[19]	10th
Hajduk Split	Tudor, IgorIgor Tudor	Resigned	4 February 2015[20]	Vukas, HariHari Vukas (caretaker)	5 February 2015[21]	3rd
Osijek	Rukavina, TomislavTomislav Rukavina	Sacked	8 February 2015[22]	SzuszakIvo Šušak	11 February 2015[22]	10th
Hajduk Split	Vukas, HariHari Vukas (caretaker)	End of caretaker tenure	19 February 2015	Poklepović, StankoStanko Poklepović	19 February 2015[23]	3rd
Hajduk Split	Poklepović, StankoStanko Poklepović	Sacked	13 April 2015[24]	Vučević, GoranGoran Vučević (caretaker)	13 April 2015[24]	4th
Hajduk Split	Vučević, GoranGoran Vučević (caretaker)	Removed from position	23 April 2015[25]	Vukas, HariHari Vukas	24 April 2015[26]	4th
Lokomotiva	Ivković, TomislavTomislav Ivković	Sacked	11 May 2015[27]	Pinčić, MarkoMarko Pinčić (caretaker)	11 May 2015	4th

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Dinamo Zagreb (C)	36	26	10	0	85	21	+64	88	2015–16 UEFA Champions League Second qualifying round
2	Rijeka	36	22	9	5	76	29	+47	75	2015–16 UEFA Europa League Second qualifying round
3	Hajduk Split	36	15	8	13	59	56	+3	050^1	2015–16 UEFA Europa League First qualifying round
4	Lokomotiva	36	13	7	16	59	68	−9	46
5	NK Zagreb	36	13	7	16	45	54	−9	46
6	Slaven Belupo	36	11	9	16	38	49	−11	42
7	RNK Split	36	9	14	13	42	49	−7	41
8	Osijek	36	10	6	20	42	59	−17	36
9	Istra 1961	36	7	14	15	36	59	−23	35	0 Relegation play-off0
10	Zadar (R)	36	8	8	20	37	75	−38	32	Relegation to 2015–16 Druga HNL

Updated to games played on 30 May 2015.
Source: Croatian Football Statistics
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd goal difference; 3rd goals scored
For deciding champions, qualification to UEFA Europa League and relegation: 1st points; 2nd head-to-head points; 3rd head-to-head goal difference; 4th head-to-head away goals scored
¹Hajduk Split were deducted 3 points for not showing up for the match against Dinamo Zagreb in the 16th round.
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Results

First round

Home ╲ Away	DIN	HAJ	IST	LOK	OSI	RIJ	SLA	SPL	ZAD	ZAG
Dinamo Zagreb		3–0^†	2–0	3–0	5–0	3–0	4–0	1–0	5–0	1–1
Hajduk Split	2–3		1–1	2–2	2–1	1–1	2–0	2–1	6–0	0–2
Istra 1961	0–4	0–2		3–2	0–0	0–1	1–0	2–0	1–1	1–2
Lokomotiva	3–4	2–5	4–2		2–0	2–1	0–0	1–1	0–1	3–0
Osijek	1–2	2–0	1–1	1–4		0–1	2–3	1–1	4–1	1–0
Rijeka	1–2	4–2	3–1	6–0	2–1		3–0	1–1	6–1	3–0
Slaven Belupo	0–0	0–1	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1		1–0	4–0	3–2
RNK Split	0–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	3–0	0–3	2–0		3–0	2–2
Zadar	1–3	0–3	1–1	2–5	2–1	0–1	4–0	1–2		2–2
NK Zagreb	0–0	2–2	1–0	2–0	1–2	1–3	2–1	1–1	3–0

Updated to games played on 7 December 2014.
Source: Croatian Football Statistics
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
^† Awarded as a 3–0 forfeit win to Dinamo Zagreb.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Second round

Home ╲ Away	DIN	HAJ	IST	LOK	OSI	RIJ	SLA	SPL	ZAD	ZAG
Dinamo Zagreb		4–0	4–1	2–1	3–0	4–0	3–2	2–0	2–0	2–0
Hajduk Split	1–1		5–3	2–1	3–2	1–2	2–1	1–2	2–2	1–0
Istra 1961	1–1	3–2		1–1	1–0	0–0	2–2	1–1	0–0	2–1
Lokomotiva	1–2	2–1	1–2		2–2	1–0	2–0	0–3	1–5	1–2
Osijek	1–1	0–1	1–0	0–2		0–0	3–2	4–0	2–1	1–0
Rijeka	2–2	3–0	3–0	5–0	3–0		1–1	2–0	4–0	4–1
Slaven Belupo	0–0	0–2	2–1	4–0	2–1	1–1		1–0	2–0	2–1
RNK Split	1–5	1–1	2–2	0–1	3–2	1–1	2–0		1–1	1–2
Zadar	0–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–0	1–1		0–1
NK Zagreb	1–1	2–0	4–0	0–6	0–4	1–2	1–0	1–2	3–0

Updated to games played on 30 May 2015.
Source: UEFA
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Relegation play-off

At the end of season, ninth placed Istra 1961 qualified for a home and away relegation playoff tie against Sesvete, runners-up of the 2014–15 Croatian Second Football League. However, Sesvete's managing board decided not to contest the tie, as their home stadium in Sesvete failed to get a licence for top level football. As the club also refused to use Maksimir Stadium as a replacement venue for hosting home games, Istra 1961 automatically avoided relegation and qualified for 2015–16 Croatian First Football League.^[28]

Top goalscorers

As of 31 May 2015; Source: Croatian Football Statistics UEFA.com

21 goals

• Andrej Kramarić (Rijeka)

20 goals

• Ángelo Henríquez (Dinamo Zagreb)

16 goals

• Dejan Radonjić (Istra 1961)

13 goals

• Gabrijel Boban (NK Zagreb)

12 goals

• Duje Čop (Dinamo Zagreb)

11 goals

• El Arbi Hillel Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb)
• Marko Pjaca (Dinamo Zagreb)

10 goals

• Sokol Cikalleshi (RNK Split)
• Marko Mirić (Slaven Belupo)
• Domagoj Pavičić (Dinamo Zagreb)

See also

• 2014–15 Croatian Second Football League
• 2014–15 Croatian Football Cup

References

1. CFS
2. "Stadion Maksimir". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
3. "Stadion Poljud". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
4. "Stadion Gradski vrt". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
5. "Stadion Kantrida". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
6. "Stadion Aldo Drosina". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
7. "Stadion Kranjčevićeva". soccerway.com. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
8. "Stadion Stanovi". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
9. "Stadion Park mladeži". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
10. "Gradski Stadion". soccerway.com. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
11. Bradovski, Mihaela (12 November 2014). "Potpisana trogodišnja suradnja između nogometnog kluba Zagreb i tvrtke JAKO Sport". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 12 November 2014.
12. Duplančić, Blaž (23 May 2014). "Vjekoslav Lokica više nije trener Zagreba". dalmacijanews.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
13. Bradovski, Mihaela (9 June 2014). "Željko Kopić poveo nogometaše Zagreba u pripreme za novu sezonu". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
14. Zovko, Ante (25 August 2014). "Ferdo Milin napustio Zadar: Ne mogu podići formu momčadi". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
15. Zovko, Ante (1 September 2014). "Miroslav Blažević preuzima Zadar, Hajduk poslao Vasilja u Slaven Belupo". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
16. Korać, Branimir (30 October 2014). "Elvis Scoria smijenjen s pozicije prvog trenera nakon blamaže u Mladini". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
17. Bradovski, Mihaela (4 November 2014). "Poznat Scorijin nasljednik, bivši trener Dinama preuzima Farmaceute". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 November 2014.
18. Bradovski, Mihaela (23 December 2014). "Zoran Vulić napušta mladu reprezentaciju i preuzima klupu Splita". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 30 December 2014.
19. Bradovski, Mihaela (7 January 2015). "Igor Štimac novi trener Zadra: "Natovario sam na sebe veliki teret, ali ću izdržati"". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 7 January 2015.
20. Rupnik, Borna (4 February 2015). "Hajduk ostao bez trenera: Igor Tudor podnio ostavku!". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 4 February 2015.
21. Korać, Branimir (5 February 2015). "Hari Vukas ipak vodi Hajduk na Kantridi, Edoardo Reja glavni kandidat za trenera". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 5 February 2015.
22. Bradovski, Mihaela (11 February 2015). "Ivo Šušak i službeno potvrđen za novog trenera Osijeka potpisom ugovora do kraja sezone". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 11 February 2015.
23. Rupnik, Borna (19 February 2015). "Edoardo Reja otpao, Stanko Poklepović preuzima Hajduk". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 19 February 2015.
24. Bradovski, Mihaela (13 April 2015). "Hajduk se zahvalio Stanku Poklepoviću, momčad do kraja sezone preuzima Goran Vučević". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 13 April 2015.
25. Korać, Branimir (23 April 2015). "Goran Vučević razriješen dužnosti trenera prve momčadi Hajduka". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 25 April 2015.
26. Rupnik, Borna (24 April 2015). "Pala odluka na Poljudu: Hari Vukas vodi Hajduk do kraja sezone". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 25 April 2015.
27. Korać, Branimir (11 May 2015). "Tomislav Ivković dobio otkaz u Lokomotivi nakon serije vrlo loših rezultata". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 11 May 2015.
28. Bradovski, Mihaela (31 May 2015). "Istra 1961 ostaje u MAXtv Prvoj ligi i sljedeće sezone, Sesvete neće igrati dodatne kvalifikacije". Sportnet.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 2 June 2015.

External links

• Official website (Croatian)
• Prva HNL at UEFA.com