Osijek laid siege for 74 minutes against Cibalia, finally breaking the defense and taking the lead, but not for long because the opponent quickly scored for a tie.
If the favored team won every time, football wouldn’t be this interesting. Sadly, Osijek can’t manage to break out from the lower portion of the ladder, Cibalia being part of it, having won a point at Gradski Vrt. As we wrote the announcement for the match, we accentuated the fact that Osijek’s every match was equally taxing and that will be the name of the game for the Slavonian El Classico.
Osijek’s constant dominance and initiative wasn’t enough, especially considering the uncomfortable situations and chances in front of the enemy goal, or the attempts at free kicks. Those things aren’t what counts in the end, so that Cibalia held their own for 95 minutes, all the while being in a place of inferiority, having defended their goal well as they used one of few chances, which was enough for them to evade defeat.
Recklessness cost them greatly
Osijek didn’t have a bad opening, quite the contrary. During the first 10 minutes, they had a few vicious attempts at netting the ball, thereby pressuring the enemy constantly. It was a pity that they hadn’t achieved a win, because if they had, Cibalia would have had to be more dispersed, and therefore more vulnerable.
When there weren’t any attempts or goals in general, it was a given that the match would prove difficult for Osijek because their time for action was effectively halved.
When Osijek’s dominance finally produced a result in the 74th minute, Maric scored a header, putting his team in the lead, but a singular moment of recklessness hemorrhaged the home team, Barac having misjudged a seemingly harmless ball that was going toward his head, when Osijek’s defense was badly positioned, which enabled Kordic pierce the defense, passing Malenica and scoring an equalizer. Cibalia pushed the rewind button on Osijek and reverted the state of the match back to the beginning, with all attempts by the home team rendered harmless and non-efficient.
Šubarić was saving the away team
The away team was blessed by the vivacious Subaric who saved them in many critical situations, one of them being a penalty kick performed by Barisic during the beginning of the second half. He was assisted by Ikic and Perisic who lost only one aerial fight in their penalty area, in the moment when Osijek scored a goal. On the other side, Osijek couldn’t best their rival in terms of a handful of players, making Ejupi’s goal-getter crisis a thorn in Osijek’s eye.
Osijek’s midfielders and strikers were circling around Cibalia’s defense fortress, but what was missing was a certain kind of uniqueness in terms of moves and attacks with which the opponent’s backline would be shattered. Additionally, the will to pierce the defense was lacking during the closing moments of the match. Hajradinovic and Boban were sorely missed in the ranks of Osijek in that aspect. 2 points were unclaimed by Osijek, but other teams are vying for the top in Europe, which is proven by the fact that each new match is a new trial and that there isn’t space for the slightest of respites.
