Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split need for a striker was on show at the weekend as centre back Igor Biscan scored the only goal in a 1-0 win Croatian Champions Dinamo. Having lost Mario Mandzukic in midweek, Dinamo gave opportunities to Ilija Sivonjic and Dodo. However it is expected Miroslav Slepicka and Andrej Kramaric will start most of the games when they return to the team.
Duje Cop on the other hand has moved ahead of Ahmad Sharbini as Hajduk's sole striker. However the 20 year old looks far from ready to fire Hajduk to a HNL1 title. Cop and Vukusic would appear to benefit more from being out on loan, but are being given an early opportunity to lead Hajduk's attack. It appears Ahmad Sharbini's Hajduk career may struggle to get off the ground. Later in the year the club may ultimately decide to part with the player.
If Hajduk have aspirations of winning the title however it would appear they require more firepower and more goals. Both Dinamo and Hajduk face a battle to attract players to the Croatian league. Palermo's Igor Budan and Ergotelis's Mario Budimir is staying put, whilst Velimir Zajec wants Ante Rukavina at Dinamo, but the strikers seems to still have a chance at Panathanaikos.
Hajduk could improve simply by signing cheaply. Atromotis's Zdravko Popovic is available for little money and HNL1 top scorer Davor Vugrinec could be signed on a free. Both players have proven track records at this level. Bojan Vrucina would also come cheaply from Hapoel Tel Aviv. Dinamo have more money to spend and could acquire something more expensive. However should they wish to give Andrej Kramaric or Slepicka a chance they could also sign cheaply to bolster the numbers.
With the season only a week away NK Zagreb and Istra Pula have thus far been frustrated by Ivan Bosnjak, Vugrinec, Tomislav Sokota, Dario Zahora and Karlo Primorac's lack of speed in coming to a decision on their future. Velimir Zajec used Dinamo's Croatian Super Cup match to give opportunities to Dario Simic and Dodo some playing time. However neither look set for the new season which should see Luis Ibanez and Pedro Morales immediately reinstalled into the starting line up. For Hajduk it would Ante Rezic is a strong contender for right back, whilst Hjorve Vejic, Marijan Buljat and Goran Jozinovic would appear to still have something to prove to Stanko Poklepovic to gain a first team place.
