Hajduk Split beat Žalgiris Vilnius 5:2 in the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League on Wednesday evening. The Croatian side put the Lithuanian hosts to the sword at the S.Dariaus and S.Girėno Stadium, ending a run of three straight wins for the home side. And here's the thing — this was not the same performance from either team that fans had seen over the past month.
Mikеле Šego opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the fifth minute, after a handball had been spotted. He missed his second penalty later, but that did not stop him from adding a second goal before half-time at 44 minutes. Žalgiris pulled one back through Nikola Petković in the 34th minute, but the momentum had already shifted. By then, the visitors had switched off at a set piece and paid for it.
Alexander Pajaziti restored the two-goal cushion in the 55th minute, and Daniell de Almeida doubled the advantage at 72. The home side responded through Rokas Pukstas in the 75th minute, making it 4:2. But Hajduk had the deeper squad, and Mladen Capan added a fifth in the 85th minute to put the game to bed early. A last-gasp offside goal for Matej Sočicek was cancelled by VAR in stoppage time, but it made no difference to the final score.
The statistics told a story of controlled dominance. Both sides registered nearly identical attack counts — 98 for Žalgiris, 99 for Hajduk — but the Croatian side found the target eight times compared to five. Possession sat at 52 per cent for the visitors, and their five corners to Žalgiris's two showed sustained pressure. Shots accuracy fell to 38 per cent for Hajduk, yet they had nothing to do all evening when it came to finishing.
The result moves Hajduk into a strong position for the next round. Žalgiris's three-match winning streak came to an end, and the Croatian side now fancy their chances to progress. Cup football has its own rules, and this was a night where efficiency mattered more than volume.