Marin Šotiček is irreplaceable for Hajduk Split and his playing style reminds him of Croatian international Ivan Perišić, according to former player and coach Ardian Kozniku. His comments come after Šotiček assisted the first and scored the winning goal in a historic 2-1 victory over Ajax in the Conference League on Thursday, 15 October.
Kozniku singled out the young midfielder for praise. “I like that Šego was optimistic, which means he has self-confidence. You can see he is in very good form.” Kozniku said.
Šotiček assisted Abdoulie Bamba Sanyang for the opener in the 37th minute, and just three minutes after Davy Klaassen's equaliser, in the 55th minute, he received a precise pass from Michele Šego and netted the winner for 2-1. Those two direct contributions confirmed his growing importance in coach Gonzalo Garcia's team. The win marked a key start to the group stage after a 16-year absence from European competition.
Kozniku rated the overall team performance as exceptional given the quality of the opponent. “I cannot say this is Hajduk's best match, but when we look at who they played against, an Ajax side that is a fantastic team, and we know the club's name, then I must say they played a fantastic match,” he stated.
The return to Europe comes as Hajduk leads the Croatian championship. After nine rounds, the Poljud side has 19 points and tops the HNL table, just one point ahead of second-placed Varaždin. With 18 goals scored and 9 conceded, their goal difference stands at +9. Current form of four wins in the last five matches provides additional momentum ahead of the important derby against Varaždin on Saturday, 18 October. Details of the upcoming schedule can be found on our fixtures page.
The win over Ajax came just five days after another vital triumph, 2-1 against Dinamo in the big derby. These two successes in such a short time have significantly boosted confidence in the dressing room. Kozniku noted that the victory over Dinamo was key to creating a winning mentality that then carried over to the European stage.
Coach Garcia, however, expresses concern about squad depth given the gruelling schedule ahead. He has openly said the team lacks sufficient players to maintain a high tempo on two fronts, in the HNL and the Conference League. The question of who would replace Michele Šego, the team's current top scorer with four goals in nine appearances, if he needed rest or got injured, was raised specifically. The full squad can be reviewed on the squad page.
Hajduk will continue their European journey on Thursday, 22 October, with an away match against Swiss side Thun. Before that, the focus is on the domestic league and preserving the top position. With his recent performances, Marin Šotiček has shown he is ready to take on even greater responsibility in these efforts.
First reported at sportklub.hr
