© E. Žaldario
For the first time this year, five matches were played on Tuesday and Wednesday in the "Optibet A League" stadiums filled with fans, after which there were several changes in the tournament table. Comfort. Vilnius "Žalgiris" striker Josip Tadić finally managed to score in the seventh match in his new club, but it was not enough - Žalgiris ended their match against Telšiai's "Džiugas" with a 2:2 draw. The capital's team played identically with another former First League participant - Alytus DFK "Dainava". Breakthrough. "Džiugas" once again showed exemplary character and at the same time managed to take the lead, but they failed to maintain the advantage. For the first time since 2014, Davydas Arlauskis scored in the "Optibet A League", having previously celebrated a goal with Gargždai "Bangos". The Samogitians fought for 2 points against the four leading teams in the tournament table, but were very close to a draw with Panevezys as well as Marijampolė's "Sūduva". Sprint. Vice champion "Sūduva" recorded their seventh consecutive victory - this time defeating "Dainava" 3:1 for the fourth time in a row. All three goals for the Sūduva team were scored from the 3rd to the 13th minute. Forward Kule Mbombo scored again, so now "Sūduva's" attacking leader already has six accurate shots. In addition, Serge Nyuiadzi scored his first goal in the opponent's net this year. Youth. This year, "Sūduva" gave the opportunity to debut to four young Lithuanian footballers. In the 1st round of the championship, Matas Miškinis made his debut, followed later by Saulius Vikertas and Modestas Vainikaitis, with 17-year-old Ernestas Burdzilauskas entering the game in the last few minutes of the recent matches. Did not give up. It seemed that "Dainava" was facing defeat, but the Alytus club showed character and played a successful last half-hour of the match. Saidas Hamuličius and Cyrille Tchayi Tchamba contributed to this - the Cameroonian footballer scored his first goal in the Lithuanian championship. "Dainava" will play the next match in Kėdainiai against the local "Nevėžis" and has a good chance to achieve their first victory. Series. Vilnius "Riteriai" won their third consecutive victory, causing "Panevėžys" to lose for the first time - 2:0. Mindaugas Grigaravičius contributed the most to this series, scoring a goal in all winning matches and now has four accurate shots in his account. The capital's club, which started the season unsuccessfully, is now in 5th place on the tournament table and will play the next match against "Žalgiris". Brothers. On Tuesday at the LFF Stadium, two matches took place: in the first match, "Džiugo" goalkeeper Marius Paukš
š "defended the goal, and in the second match, his younger brother Lukas played in the game. Both goalkeepers played well - for L. Paukštis it was a triumphant debut this season. Recognition. The best young player of the month, "Kauno Žalgiris" striker Philip Otele, stood out for the first time in March and April. The two goals scored by this footballer in the 3:2 derby win helped overcome Kaunas region's "Hegelmann Litauen". Ph. Otele has already scored five times and is only second in the list of top scorers after K. Mbombo. Duo. After dropping out of the lineup of Mantas Fridrikas, "Hegelmann Litauen" team coach Andrius Skerla formed a pair of central defenders from the 18-year-old Mato Deduros and the two-year-old Vilius Armalis. Although individually both footballers did not play the best of matches, A. Skerla emphasized his trust in the young players. Levan Macharashvili scored a couple of accurate shots, which with 3 goals made him the most prolific team player, surpassing previous top scorer Vilius Armanavičius. Move. "Banga", which started the championship season with four consecutive defeats, beat "Nevėžis" 5:2, winning their third consecutive victory and rising to 6th position in the tournament table. Head coach Tomas Tamošauskas was pleased that five different players scored goals, including 21-year-old Darius Zubauskas. Fighting spirit. The Kėdainiai team suffered their seventh consecutive defeat, but experienced goalkeeper Aretas Gėgžna does not count his strength in a difficult situation. The 32-year-old debutant of the "Optibet A League" scored his second goal of the season, earned a penalty, and with an impressive raid created a great opportunity for his teammate to score.
