Arsenal Tivat and Buducnost Podgorica played out a scoreless draw in the third match of the First League regular season on Saturday evening. The fixture finished 0:0 at the home ground, adding to a run of tight encounters between the sides. It was the kind of result neither side would celebrate, but both would accept.
The first half offered little in the way of clear-cut chances, with both sides feeling each other out rather than committing forward. Arsenal Tivat pinned them back at times, but Buducnost did not travel to make up the numbers. By the break the game had settled into a rhythm neither team could break.
Things shifted after the interval with a series of changes from both managers. I. Ivanovic came on for Arsenal Tivat in the thirty-third minute, while Buducnost saw A. Orahovac booked at the half-hour mark. The wave of substitutions began in earnest around the seventy-first minute, with M. Djukanovic and K. Vujacic both introduced for the visitors. Arsenal Tivat responded with their own changes, bringing on M. Jovanovic and V. Kascelan in quick succession.
and here's the thing about a zero-goal game — the statistics tell you very little about who really wanted it more. Arsenal Tivat had 47 per cent possession but managed only four shots on target from 137 attacks. Buducnost held 53 per cent but could find the target only three times despite 162 attacks. It was a match where work was done but nothing stuck.
the visitors added another substitution in the eighty-fourth minute when D. Vukanic and G. Makrydakis both entered the field, while Arsenal Tivat brought on S. Mandic in the first minute of stoppage time. The yellow card for Orahovac at fifty-four minutes remained the only disciplinary action of note.
to be fair, the result keeps both sides where they were before this round. Arsenal Tivat remain ninth with four points from five games, having failed to win any of their opening fixtures. Buducnost sit sixth with five points, one point ahead of their opponents and carrying a single victory into the new week.
the pattern for Arsenal Tivat continues — three consecutive 0:0 draws this season, following encounters with Morar and Decic. Buducnost's form looks steadier on paper, with a win against Sutjeska and two clean sheets, but Saturday's result suggests they still have work to do. The gap between them remains narrow, and these points were worth taking for both sides.