In the composition of the Lithuanian national team - young stars and 10 players from A league

2014-05-22 14:29 © EuroFootball.com

Lithuania's national football team will test its strength with neighbors in preparation for the start of the European Championship qualifiers - in the traditional Baltic Cup tournament in Latvia and in friendly matches in Poland. 24 players have been invited to the team for the upcoming matches, with 10 of them currently playing in "SMSCredit.lt A League" clubs.

For the first time, goalkeeper Aurimas Vertelis, who plays in Romania for Pakruojo "Kruoja", and Tautvydas Eliošius, also a goalkeeper for Pakruojo "Kruoja", will participate in the national team camp.

Also invited to the team after a shorter or longer break are Vytautas Černiauskas, who represented a Romanian club this season, and a group of Lithuanian cube players: defenders Andrius Bartkus, Ramūnas Radavičius, safeties Vytautas Lukša, Linas Pilibaitis, Artūras Žulpa, forwards Tadas Eliošius and Ričardas Beniušis.

According to national team coach Igoris Pankratjevas, the selection of players for the upcoming matches has been significantly affected by injuries, as well as the different and overlapping calendars of various countries' championships.

"Eight players we wanted to invite are recovering from injuries. Several clubs are unwilling to release players as there are championship matches going on at that time, and the Baltic Cup tournament does not fit into the official FIFA calendar. For these reasons, the composition of the team is not optimal," said Pankratjevas. "On the other hand, this is an opportunity for other footballers to prove themselves. Especially those we have selected while watching Lithuanian championship matches."

According to the coach, the Baltic Cup tournament is beneficial as a chance to compete for the trophy and as preparation for future qualifying matches.

"This is a very important - one might say the final - stage of preparation, as there will be no more opportunities to play friendly matches in the fall. However, we always want to win, to please the fans. That's why we are preparing to take to the field," said Pankratjevas.

After the Baltic Cup tournament, the national team will receive a small boost - before the match against Poland, defenders Vytautas Andriuškevičius, safeties Gediminas Vičius and Mantas Kuklys should join the team.

The Lithuanian team will gather for training camp in Palanga on May 24. On May 28, the team will depart to Ventspils, where the Lithuanians will face the representatives of Finland in the Baltic Cup semifinals the next day.

On May 31, in the final or in the match for third place, Lithuania will face teams from Latvia or Estonia. After returning from Latvia, the national team will briefly regroup in Kaunas and then head to Gdansk, where on June 6 they will play friendly matches against Poland.

In 2016, Lithuania will start the European Championship qualifying matches on September 8 against San Marino, and host teams from Estonia and Slovenia in Vilnius from October 9-12.

List of candidates for the Lithuanian national football team for the Baltic Cup tournament:

Goalkeepers:

Giedrius Arlauskis (Kazan's "Rubin", Russia)

Emilijus Zubas ("Viborg" FF, Denmark)

Vytautas Černiauskas ("Vaslui" FC, Romania)

Defenders:

Tadas Kijanskas (Haifa's "Hapoel", Israel)

Valdemar Borovskij (Riga's "Daugava", Latvia)

Georgas Freidgeimas (Vilnius MFD "Žalgiris")

Egidijus Vaitkūnas (Prague's "Bohemians 1905", Czech Republic)

Andrius Bartkus (Klaipėda's "Atlantas")

Ramūnas Radavičius (Vilnius MFD "Žalgiris")