The Opatija Sentinel
Squad10 Aug 2026
A move Mihael Mladen would have made for nothing
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Mihael Mladen is living that version at Opatija, and it tends to show in the first month.
Squad10 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Opatija
Josip Elez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad10 Aug 2026
A row about effort at Opatija
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dino Kapitanović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The terraces10 Aug 2026
One of their own: Leon Brlek
He is 21 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Market10 Aug 2026
One of our own: Robert Budimir joins the Opatija first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Robert Budimir is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market10 Aug 2026
Mateo Petkovic steps up from the Opatija academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Mateo Petkovic has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
Marco Kovacevic steps up from the Opatija academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Marco Kovacevic has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
Filip Kramaric steps up from the Opatija academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Filip Kramaric has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Match8 Aug 2026
Dominik Paškvan sends Opatija past Croatia Zmijavci
It finished 1‑0, and it was Dominik Paškvan’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Opatija.
In brief
- Squad Josip Elez has outgrown this division
- Player ratings Goodness Ajayi stands above it all
- Transfer targets Opatija ask about Tomasz Bała