Coach Joan Carrillo's squad was defeated in the first - leg match of the UEFA Europa League Playoff at Goodison Park stadium in Liverpool. Hajduk lost by the hosts Everton 2:0, and both goals were scored in the first half. In the second half, Hajduk had their opportunities to score through Ante Erceg, Nikola Vlasic and Hysen Memolla, but goalkeeper Jordan Pickford saved all of their attempts.

"Everton showed their strength, but when I analyze the match, the goals were  scored after our two mistakes. They did not surprise us with anything and we responded well on their game. In the second half we showed that we can deal with them, I'm sorry we did not score, but we have lots of things to show in the second - leg match, and I think everything is still open and we can still qualify for the group stage. We will play in Split 90 more minutes, maybe even more, who knows. It is a shame that we have not scored a goal from the chances we had in the second half" said Carrillo at a press conference after the match.