Born in Zagreb, Socialist Republic of Croatia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Pavličić started playing professionally for local NK Dinamo, being irregularly used over the course of three seasons. He developed into a top division player with NK Rijeka, helping it to two sixth-place finishes and one fourth in the newly founded Croatian First Football League; in the 1993–94 Croatian Cup, he scored the game's only goal in the second leg of the final, albeit in an eventual 1–2 aggregate loss.
