Dinamo Zagreb vs Varazdin Prediction: A crisis as never before in Dinamo

This weekend, the last round of the first part of the HNL championship is being played, and the match between Dinamo and Varazdin at Maksimir is definitely attracting the most interest. The home team, under Nenad Bjelica, has fallen into an incredible series of 7 games without a win. The “blues” have never had such a crisis. They are winless in five matches in the HNL, so now the Zagreb club have the same number of points won as Varazdin and Osijek and have 7 points less than Rijeka and Hajduk.

Form: LDDLL

Dinamo's management was clear on the eve of this match. Another failure and Bjelica must leave. That's why I can say that the coach is under great pressure and has to come up with a strategy that will bring the team three points. Bruno Petkovic and Petar Sucic, the leaders of Dinamo are still on the injured list, and Arijan Ademi and Josip Misic are also not fully fit to play. However, Dinamo have the widest squad in the HNL and should be able to win even when they are plagued by injuries. This run of seven matches without a win in all competitions is the worst run of this team in the last ten if not fifteen years. Dinamo are currently in 3rd place with 26 points, the same as their opponent Varazdin, but what is more concerning is that Hajduk and Rijeka are seven points away. The fans were very active these days in Zagreb, placing banners and pictures of their glorious moments to “wake” the players and remind them what Dinamo means.

Form: DDWDD

Varazdin, led by coach Nikola Safaric, have exceeded expectations in the championship so far. They are fighting equally with Osijek and Dinamo and have proven to be a tough nut to crack for anyone they play against. However, Varazdin did not score a goal in the previous two games and thus missed the opportunity to take an even better position in the standings. Regardless, they are excellently organized and difficult to break. In the away ranks, Michele Sego stands out as a very dangerous forward, and there is also Marko Dabro who can always complicate the game with his goals. Even the forgotten Ante Coric has been brought into the team and is trying to revive his career, while Dimitar Mitrovski appears to be the best individual in the midfield, but he is suspended for this match due to a yellow card penalty. I expect another excellent defensive play by this team, it’s their trademark this season, but regardless it will be difficult for them to avoid defeat.

Despite a 7-game winless streak, all the top bookmakers see Dinamo as the big favorite and give quite low odds on their victory. I, on the other hand, believe that we are in for a trench battle at Maksimir. The stakes are high, and mistakes will be paid dearly in this match. Both sides will be careful to keep their goal clean. In such a match, my sports betting tips must start with a recommendation for under 2.5 goals. This could be a game that starts cautiously and only unravels later. An alternative to this is a bet that there will be more goals in the second half than in the first, or a draw in the first half.