NK Istra 1961 Pula (Home)
- NK Istra 1961 Pula (5th) and HNK Rijeka (3rd) have taken 42 and 49 points respectively from their 34 matches in the HNL 2025-2026 season.
- Kresimir Rezic has certainly done a good job since taking the reins in April 2026 and bringing his pragmatism and transition-based style of soccer to the club.
- They’ve won back-to-back games and three of their last five going into this weekend’s game - a 3-1 home win over Slaven and a 1-0 away win at Osijek.
- The hosts are led in attack by Smail Prevljak, who has hit 14 goals in 31 appearances in the HNL and has netted three of his side’s last five.
HNK Rijeka (Away)
- HNK Rijeka will likely line up in a 4-3-3 formation as Victor Sanchez does with most of his teams.
- Sanchez is a creative thinker who likes to dominate possession with his teams and structure them in a way that they can create overloads in various areas of the field.
- He presses his sides to be disciplined and they will look to play at a controlled tempo, but they are capable of switching to a more vertical approach when they have the opportunity.
- The visitors come into this game having beaten Lokomotiva Zagreb 3-0 away and Vukovar 1991 3-0 at home either side of a 2-0 defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in the Croatia Cup.
- So with two wins, a draw and two defeats in their last five, they are in decent form, but they have also had a similar outcome in each of their last two away games, winning and losing one each.
- Toni Fruk has been the star man for Rijeka with 12 goals in 29 HNL appearances this term, but Daniel Adu-Adjei has bagged three goals in their last five.
Head-to-Head
- The away team won this matchup the last time they met in HNL 2025/2026 (Rijeka 0-2).
- HNK Rijeka have won two of their last three away trips to Istra.
Key Players
- The hosts are led in attack by Smail Prevljak, who has hit 14 goals in 31 appearances in the HNL and has netted three of his side’s last five.
- Toni Fruk has been the star man for Rijeka with 12 goals in 29 HNL appearances this term, and Daniel Adu-Adjei has bagged three goals in their last five.
Betting Insights
Rijeka can be better than their current league position suggests and with a win at 1.76 , Under 2.5 goals at 1.85 and Both Teams to Score - Yes at 1.8 all appearing good value, we’re backing the away side to edge a close encounter.
Prediction
The home side will look to press intensely and are adept at closing down and scoring on the break against possession-based teams, but Rijeka’s structure should hold firm, although goals could be at a premium for both teams.
