2017–18 Croatian First Football League

The 2017–18 Croatian First Football League (officially Hrvatski Telekom Prva liga for sponsorship reasons) was the 27th season of the Croatian First Football League, the national championship for men's association football teams in Croatia, since its establishment in 1992. The season started on 14 July 2017 and ended on 19 May 2018. Rijeka were the defending champions, who have won their first Croatian league title and ended Dinamo Zagreb's consecutive 11-season reign the previous season. Dinamo Zagreb ultimately reclaimed the title by May 2018, their 19th since the league's inception, with Rijeka ending close second.

Hrvatski Telekom Prva liga
Season2017–18
Dates14 July 2017 – 19 May 2018
ChampionsDinamo Zagreb
RelegatedCibalia
Champions LeagueDinamo Zagreb
Europa LeagueRijeka
Hajduk Split
Osijek
Matches played180
Goals scored496 (2.76 per match)
Top goalscorerEl Arabi Hillel Soudani (17)
Biggest home winRijeka 7–0 Cibalia
Biggest away winCibalia 0–5 Hajduk Split
Highest scoringRijeka 7–0 Cibalia
Cibalia 2–5 Dinamo Zagreb
Lokomotiva 5–2 Slaven Belupo
Longest winning runDinamo Zagreb (6)
Longest unbeaten runDinamo Zagreb (21)
Longest winless runSlaven Belupo (11)
Longest losing runCibalia, Istra 1961 (5)
Highest attendance31,751
Hajduk Split 1–2 Dinamo Zagreb
Lowest attendance80
Lokomotiva 2–3 Inter Zaprešić
Total attendance530,638[1][2]
Average attendance2,948[1][2]

The league was contested by 10 teams.

Teams

On 21 April 2017, Croatian Football Federation announced that the first stage of licensing procedure for 2017–18 season was complete. For the 2017–18 Prva HNL, only seven clubs were issued a top level license: Dinamo Zagreb, Hajduk Split, Inter Zaprešić, Lokomotiva, Osijek, Rijeka and Slaven Belupo. All of these clubs except Inter Zaprešić were also issued a license for participating in UEFA competitions.[3] In the second stage of licensing, clubs that were not licensed in the first stage can appeal on the decision. On 23 May 2017, it was announced that all remaining Prva HNL clubs except RNK Split were granted top level license. Four teams from Druga HNL acquired the top level license: Gorica, Rudeš, Solin and NK Zagreb.[4]

Stadia and locations
Team City Stadium Capacity Ref.
CibaliaVinkovciStadion HNK Cibalia9,958[5]
Dinamo ZagrebZagrebMaksimir35,123[6]
Hajduk SplitSplitPoljud35,000[7]
Inter ZaprešićZaprešićŠRC Zaprešić5,228[8]
Istra 1961PulaAldo Drosina10,000[9]
LokomotivaZagrebKranjčevićeva18,850[10]
OsijekOsijekGradski vrt22,050[11]
RijekaRijekaRujevica8,191[12]
RudešZagrebKranjčevićeva18,850[10]
Slaven BelupoKoprivnicaGradski stadion3,205[13]
  • 1 Lokomotiva and Rudeš host their home matches at Stadion Kranjčevićeva as their own grounds failed to get license for top level football. The stadium was originally the home ground of third-level side NK Zagreb.

Teams by county
Locations of teams in 2017–18 Prva HNL
Rank Counties of Croatia Number of teams Club(s)
1 Coat of arms of the city of Zagreb City of Zagreb 3 Dinamo Zagreb, Lokomotiva, and Rudeš
2 Coat of arms of Istria County Istria 1 Istra 1961
Coat of arms of Koprivnica-Križevci County Koprivnica-Križevci Slaven
Coat of arms of Osijek-Baranja County Osijek-Baranja Osijek
Coat of arms of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County Primorje-Gorski Kotar Rijeka
Coat of arms of Split-Dalmatia County Split-Dalmatia Hajduk Split
Coat of arms of Vukovar-Srijem County Vukovar-Srijem Cibalia
Post-1992 coat of arms of Zagreb County Zagreb County Inter Zaprešić

Personnel and kits
Club Chairman Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Sponsors
Cibalia Josip Kuterovac Croatia Davor Rupnik Croatia Frane Vitaić Jako DOBRO
Dinamo Zagreb Mirko Barišić Croatia Nenad Bjelica North Macedonia Arijan Ademi adidas
Hajduk Split Ivan Kos Croatia Željko Kopić Croatia Zoran Nižić Macron Tommy
Inter Zaprešić Branko Laljak Croatia Samir Toplak Croatia Tomislav Šarić Joma Veleučilište Baltazar Zaprešić
Istra 1961 Vacant Croatia Darko Raić-Sudar Croatia Aljoša Vojnović Nike Croatia Osiguranje
Lokomotiva Tin Dolički Croatia Goran Tomić Croatia Ivan Šunjić Nike Crodux
Osijek Ivan Meštrović Croatia Zoran Zekić Croatia Borna Barišić Nike DOBRO
Rijeka Damir Mišković Slovenia Matjaž Kek Croatia Filip Bradarić Jako Sava Osiguranje
Rudeš Ivan Knežević Spain José Manuel Aira Croatia Leonard Mesarić Kelme
Slaven Belupo Hrvoje Kolarić Croatia Tomislav Ivković Croatia Vedran Purić adidas Belupo

Managerial changes
Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Replaced by Date of appointment Position in table
Istra 1961 Croatia Marijo Tot Sacked 2 June 2017 Croatia Darko Raić-Sudar 2 June 2017 Pre-season
Rudeš Croatia Igor Bišćan Signed by Olimpija 2 June 2017 Spain Iñaki Alonso 10 June 2017 Pre-season
Dinamo Zagreb Bulgaria Ivaylo Petev Sacked 13 July 2017 Croatia Mario Cvitanović 13 July 2017 Pre-season
Slaven Belupo Croatia Željko Kopić Resigned 24 October 2017 Croatia Tomislav Ivković 26 October 2017 7th
Hajduk Split Spain Joan Carrillo Sacked 6 November 2017 Croatia Vik Lalić (caretaker) 6 November 2017 4th
Hajduk Split Croatia Vik Lalić (caretaker) Signing of Kopić - Croatia Željko Kopić 13 November 2017 4th
Lokomotiva Croatia Mario Tokić Removed from position 5 December 2017 Croatia Draženko Prskalo (caretaker) 5 December 2017 6th
Rudeš Spain Iñaki Alonso Removed from position 26 December 2017 Croatia Dinko Jeličić 27 December 2017 10th
Lokomotiva Croatia Draženko Prskalo (caretaker) Signing of Tomić 27 December 2017 Croatia Goran Tomić 27 December 2017 6th
Dinamo Zagreb Croatia Mario Cvitanović Resigned 10 March 2018

Croatia Nikola Jurčević

 12 March 2018 1st
Rudeš Croatia Dinko Jeličić Sacked 10 March 2018 Spain José Manuel Aira 12 March 2018 10th
Cibalia Bosnia and Herzegovina Mladen Bartolović Sacked 19 March 2018 Croatia Davor Rupnik 19 March 2018 9th
Dinamo Zagreb Croatia Nikola Jurčević Sacked 15 May 2018

Croatia Nenad Bjelica

 15 May 2018 1st
Rudeš Spain José Manuel Aira Signed by Sochaux 22 May 2018 8th

League table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Dinamo Zagreb (C) 36 22 7 7 68 34 +34 73 Qualification to Champions League second qualifying round
2 Rijeka 36 22 4 10 75 32 +43 70 Qualification to Europa League third qualifying round[lower-alpha 1]
3 Hajduk Split 36 19 9 8 70 38 +32 66 Qualification to Europa League second qualifying round[lower-alpha 1]
4 Osijek 36 14 14 8 53 38 +15 56 Qualification to Europa League first qualifying round[lower-alpha 1]
5 Lokomotiva 36 14 9 13 47 48 −1 51
6 Slaven Belupo 36 11 10 15 35 45 −10 43
7 Inter Zaprešić 36 11 10 15 43 64 −21 43
8 Rudeš 36 10 10 16 41 62 −21 40
9 Istra 1961 (O) 36 6 9 21 28 60 −32 27 Qualification to Relegation play-offs
10 Cibalia (R) 36 6 8 22 36 75 −39 26 Relegation to Croatian Second Football League
Source: PrvaHNL.hr
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored (at home if two teams tied); 5) Goal difference; 6) Goals scored; 7) Play-off
(Note: Criteria 2–4 and 7 is only used if deciding champion, teams to international competition or teams for relegation and in that case criteria 6 will not be used).[14]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. Since the winners of the 2017–18 Croatian Football Cup, Dinamo Zagreb, qualified for European competition based on league position, the spot awarded to the cup winners (Europa League third qualifying round) was passed to the runners-up, the spot awarded to the runners-up was passed to the third-placed team, and the spot awarded to the third-placed team was passed to the fourth-placed team.

Results

Each team plays home-and-away against every other team in the league twice, for a total of 36 matches each played.

Positions by round
Team ╲ Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536
Cibalia71010108766788988988889999999991010101010101010
Dinamo Zagreb412111111111111111111111111111111111
Hajduk Split133522233333344232322222222222233333
Inter Zaprešić245466778776665555555555655555555666
Istra 19619799991091010108998999988888888899999999
Lokomotiva898778886665556666666777777766666555
Osijek566644444444422343234344444444444444
Rijeka321233322222233424443433333333322222
Rudeš68781010910999101010101010101010101010101010101088888888
Slaven Belupo1054355555557777777777666566677777777
Leader / Qualification to UEFA Champions League
Qualification to UEFA Europa League
Relegation play-off
Relegation to Druga HNL
Source:

Relegation play-offs

At the end of the season, ninth placed team Istra 1961 will contest a two-legged relegation play-off tie against Varaždin, runners-up of the 2017–18 Croatian Second Football League.

First leg
Istra 19613–1Varaždin
Golubar 55' (o.g.)
Vojnović 64'
Roce 88'		 Drožđek 10'
Attendance: 4,107
Referee: Fran Jović (Zagreb)

Second leg
Varaždin1–0Istra 1961
Drožđek 55'
Attendance: 8,153
Referee: Duje Strukan (Split)

Istra 1961 won 3–2 on aggregate.

Statistics

Top scorers
As of 19 May 2018[15][16]
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Algeria El Arabi Hillel Soudani Dinamo Zagreb 17
2 Brazil Héber Rijeka 16
3 Switzerland Mario Gavranović Rijeka (7), Dinamo Zagreb (8) 15
North Macedonia Mirko Ivanovski Slaven Belupo
5 Croatia Mario Budimir Rudeš (13), Dinamo Zagreb (1) 14
6 Croatia Jakov Puljić Inter Zaprešić (4), Rijeka (8) 12
7 Croatia Lovro Majer Lokomotiva 11
Italy Said Ahmed Said Hajduk Split
9 Croatia Ante Erceg Hajduk Split 9
Bosnia and Herzegovina Haris Hajradinović Osijek
Cameroon Franck Ohandza Hajduk Split

Awards

Annual awards
Award[17] Winner Club
Player of the Season Algeria Hillal Soudani Dinamo Zagreb
Manager of the Season Slovenia Matjaž Kek Rijeka
Young Player of the Season Croatia Lovro Majer Lokomotiva
Team of the Year[18]
Goalkeeper Croatia Dominik Livaković (Dinamo Zagreb)
Defence Croatia Josip Juranović (Hajduk Split) Croatia Zoran Nižić (Hajduk Split) Croatia Filip Benković (Dinamo Zagreb)
Midfield

Algeria Hillal Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb)

 North Macedonia Arijan Ademi (Dinamo Zagreb) Croatia Filip Bradarić (Rijeka) Croatia Borna Sosa (Dinamo Zagreb)
CroatiaLovro Majer (Lokomotiva)
Attack

Switzerland Mario Gavranović (Dinamo Zagreb)

Brazil Héber (Rijeka)

References
  1. prvahnl.hr
  2. hrnogomet.hr
  3. "Središnji postupak licenciranja za natjecateljsku 2017/18. godinu za UEFA klupska natjecanja, Prvu HNL i u Drugu HNL završen u prvom stupnju" (PDF). hns-cff.hr (in Croatian). 21 April 2017. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  4. "Središnji postupak licenciranja za natjecateljsku 2017/18. godinu za UEFA klupska natjecanja, Prvu HNL i u Drugu HNL Konačne odluke" (PDF). hns-cff.hr (in Croatian). 21 April 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  5. "Stadion Cibalia". soccerway.com. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  6. "Stadion Maksimir". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  7. "Stadion Poljud". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  8. "Stadion ŠRC Zaprešić". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  9. "Stadion Aldo Drosina". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  10. "Stadion Kranjčevićeva". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  11. "Stadion Gradski vrt". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  12. "Stadion HNK Rijeka". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  13. "Gradski Stadion". prvahnl.hr. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
  14. "Propozicije natjecanja za prvenstvo Hrvatski Telekom Prve lige za natjecateljsku godinu 2017/2018" (PDF). hns-cff.hr (in Croatian). 5 July 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 May 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
  15. PrvaHNL.hr
  16. SofaScore
  17. HUNS.hr. "Održana šesta dodjela nagrada Trofej Nogometaš". Hrvatska udruga „Nogometni sindikat“ (in Croatian). Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  18. HUNS.hr. "Održana šesta dodjela nagrada Trofej Nogometaš". Hrvatska udruga „Nogometni sindikat“ (in Croatian). Retrieved 1 December 2022.

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