E. Jankauskas: "I have no doubt that we will rise again."

2024-11-19 09:17 © lff.lt

The Lithuanian men’s national team concluded their UEFA Nations League campaign with a loss, falling 0:1 to the Kosovo team on Monday evening away from home.

This result means that the Lithuanians finish fourth in the group and will be relegated directly to Division D of the Nations League, where the matches are scheduled for 2026.

After the last year's matches, the performance of the national team was summarized by coach Edgaras Jankauskas.

"It's sad because we are dropping to Division D, but I have no doubt that we will rise back up again.

People, fans see and appreciate our efforts, hard work, and the team’s dedication, for which the fans thank us. I believe that what is most important for the fans is the emotion, dedication, and passion we provide, and our connection with them is really strong.

We lack luck, and sometimes we may lack quality, but the opponents are also strong; however, you cannot deny that the men are trying, and everyone sees it. We will try not to disappoint the fans but patience is needed,” summarized coach E. Jankauskas.

He also discussed the most unsuccessful episode of the match – the conceded goal, which came in the fifth minute of the game.

"The match started very unfortunately for us; we struggled a bit with the excitement, lacked courage, but we have to acknowledge that coming here and playing is and will be difficult for any team.

Kosovo is a very good and technical team, and driven by such famous support it becomes an even greater force. We knew it would be hard, and we felt it, but after conceding the goal, we managed to take control of the game. We felt that we could play, the game evened out.

The home team usually starts their matches very actively, wanting to solve their issues as early as possible, and we know this well and prepare for it. But again, it must be said that this was probably the cheapest conceded goal of the cycle, which is the most disappointing.

And here it’s hardly just a lack of concentration; perhaps it's more about wrong decisions. The pass to Edgaras Utkus was uncomfortable, his reception wasn’t as it should have been, and it seemed like we brought the goal upon ourselves out of nowhere.

We see our mistakes, but we all made mistakes together as a team, and we pay for that. It’s really very disappointing, especially since it became the only goal that decided the match,” shared the coach's thoughts.

After the break, already having a numerical advantage, the Lithuanians created several dangerous chances to score, but a couple of shots rattled the goalpost, and a strong shot from Vykintis Slivka was saved by the opposing goalkeeper.

"After the break, we completely dominated; the opponents even switched to a three-center-back formation as they struggled to 'grab' the balls.

But the men really gave their all, for example, Edvinas Gertmonas played while receiving painkillers. It’s really very disappointing that after giving so much effort, we still lacked luck and didn’t fight for anything again. Of course, it’s good that the team didn’t break after receiving a blow at the start of the match and truly showed character,” lamented E. Jankauskas.