© EuroFootball.com
In the Lithuanian Football League "A lyga" matches of the 30th round, characterized by two very intense and dramatic games - "Kaunas" won in a "thriller" against "Sūduva" away, while in the other matches "Vėtra" defeated "Atlantas" after a fierce battle and now holds a eight-point advantage in third position over the pursuers. The league leaders "Ekranas" and "Žalgiris" also secured victories on their opponents' turf, while the match between "Vilnius" and "Šiauliai", as reported, ended in a draw.
In fourth place, Marijampolė's "Sūduva" hosted the "Kaunas" club, which still had theoretical hopes of defending their champion title, and after playing for just over half an hour, surged ahead after a precise strike from V. Adomaičius. After a few minutes, the hosts' lead was doubled by "Sūduva's" attacking leader T. Radzinevičius, and at the end of the second half, the result was softened and the intrigue was restored by the guest legionnaire G. Kvaratskhelia.
In the 58th minute, A. Klimekas, who appeared on the field after a substitution, equalized the score. The match continued, and soon "Sūduva" began to head in a favorable direction, as V. Afanasenka, who scored a goal, once again led Marijampolė's team ahead. However, this was not the end - in the 82nd minute, the same G. Kvaratskhelia once again equalized the score, and just a minute later, the young L. Pilibaitis scored his fourth goal for his team, snatching victory for the Kaunas team.
"When we were leading 2-0, it seemed like "Kaunas" was buried. In the second half, we could have increased the lead to two goals, but after Saulius Butka's shot, the ball hit the crossbar. You could say that Lady Luck turned her back on us. I think it's not that "Kaunas" won, but that "Sūduva" lost," said "Sūduva's" coach Algimantas Gabrys just three hours after the match.
The coach stated that both the Marijampolė players and the spectators were satisfied with the team's effort, as after the match, despite the defeat, they thanked the team and chanted "Sū-du-va, Sū-du-va".
"It's unfortunate that the match ended with this result. We really wanted to beat the Kaunas team, but our defenders played poorly, so the opponents managed to escape defeat," regretted A. Gabrys.
"Our defenders made a lot of mistakes, enough for an entire season. The attacking team played well. Perhaps our players were a bit relaxed after the well-played LFF Cup semifinal match against "Ekranas". Still, I'm glad we managed to win," said "Kaunas" head coach Igoris Pankratjevas.
Asked about the performance of 20-year-old Linas Pilibaitis, who has been appearing more often on the field, the coach spared warm words: "Linas trains very seriously, he is promising, a good footballer. We have high hopes for him."
Similarly, the match unfolded in Vilnius, where "Vėtra" faced Klaipėda's "Atlantas". In the 34th minute, the first goal was scored by E. Blažys, soon followed by another by N. Sasnauskas, giving the hosts a convincing two-goal lead.
However, despite this, the team with one of the worst seasons in recent years, "Atlantas", did not give up, and equalized the score - M. Bezykornovas scored in the 60th minute, and A. Petreikis managed to equalize in the 74th minute. However, the end of the match favored "Vėtra", who secured victory in the 83rd minute with a goal from N. Sasnauskas.
"The match was very fierce and competitive. Neither team wanted to lose. We were leading 2-0, the Klaipėda team managed to equalize. Then our boys had to fight with all their might and simply snatch victory," said "Vėtra's" head coach Sergejus Borovskis.
The Vilnius coach believes that the match would have been much easier for his team if the players had been able to capitalize on the opportunities to score a goal: "Neither "Vėtra" nor "Atlantas" defended well. This is reflected in the match result. However, the most important thing is that we achieved our goal - we won three points."
Asked how goalkeeper Darvydas Šernas looked on the field again after his injury, the coach replied: "Not bad. D. Šernas tried very hard, but he still lacks energy to last two halves."
Closer to the gold medals is Panevėžys' "Ekranas", who faced the home team in Šilutė, having a number of players on loan from Kaunas, and won after two goals from P. Lukšys in the 30th and 71st minutes, maintaining a ten-point lead over the Kaunas team in second place.
The opponents had only one chance throughout the match, they created nothing more. Our players had a few chances to score. Mantas Savėnas, Povilas Lukšys could have scored. Once "Šilutė" was saved from a goal by goalkeeper Modestas Stonys, and after P. Lukšys's shot, the ball hit the crossbar," said "Ekranas' head coach Virginijus Liubšys.
He said that the "Šilutė" players fought very hard. "The opponents fought with all their might, like "Matrosov's", because the team is represented by many players from the "Kaunas" club," said V. Liubšys.
Finally, from the eighth position, surpassing "Atlantas" in goal difference, Vilnius' "Žalgiris" finally rose, defeating the absolute underdog, Kėdainiai's "Nevėžis", away. Both forwards I. Morinas and M. Karalius scored goals at the beginning of the match for Žalgiris, and M. Juknevičius provided consolation for the hosts with a precise shot in the second half.
In the next, 31st round, which will take place in two weeks due to the international break, "Ekranas" will face "Vėtra" in an intriguing match, the disappointments of the season, "Atlantas" and "Žalgiris" will fight for seventh place, "Kaunas" and "Vilnius" will hope for three points respectively from "Šilutė" and "Nevėžis", while "Sūduva" will try to beat "Šiauliai" away.
