English-Ghanaian forward Daniel Adu-Adjei produced a sensational performance for HNK Rijeka, scoring a first-half hat-trick in their 4-1 victory over NK Karlovac 1919 in the Croatian Cup round of 16 on Tuesday, October 20.

The 20-year-old opened the scoring in the 14th minute after converting Tiago Dantas’ assist before doubling Rijeka’s advantage nine minutes later with the help of Ante Oreč’s pass.

Adu-Adjei completed his treble in the 41st minute, finishing off another well-worked move after receiving Branko Pavić’s delivery to give Rijeka a commanding 3-0 lead at the break.

NK Karlovac pulled one goal back through Luka Kapulica in the 76th minute, but Rijeka quickly restored their three-goal advantage when Mohammad Mohebi scored five minutes later following an assist from Amer Gojak.

Adu-Adjei’s outstanding display earned him the fans’ Player of the Match award, securing 77 per cent of the vote. He was substituted in the 83rd minute for Ante Matej Jurić after a memorable attacking performance.

Rijeka controlled proceedings throughout the encounter, dominating possession and creating the majority of the clear chances as they comfortably secured qualification to the next round of the competition.

The victory keeps Rijeka’s momentum going ahead of their upcoming HNL fixture against Dinamo on October 27, where Adu-Adjei will hope to continue his impressive run of form.