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The most visited football news portal EuroFootball.com talked to sports journalist and commentator Paulius Jakelis. Having traveled with the national team to many matches, P. Jakelis shared his thoughts on the team assembled by Edgaras Jankauskas, the team's chances in the qualifiers, the growing competition in the A League, and his belief in the team.
"First of all, Paulius, what do you think of the national team? Has Edgaras Jankauskas brought new energy to this team?"
"At the moment, I really like the way the entire coaching staff of the Lithuanian national team, led by Edgaras Jankauskas, approaches their work. I have no doubt that from the LFF side, this was the right choice. I had the opportunity to work with the team for quite a long time, creating various reports about them while working for Futbolo.TV, so I was able to see everything from the inside.
"Edgaras is incredibly dedicated to what he does. I see very positive changes. The way he works with the players during training, what he tries to instill in the footballers. We Lithuanians often underestimate ourselves in football. In sports, that just can't be. You have to believe in yourself, you have to trust yourself. Edgaras is trying to change the entire philosophy, and so far he is doing it excellently, as we have seen both in the Baltic Cup and in the matches with Poland."
"So, first of all, the new winds - in our heads. Secondly, the tactical changes are clearly visible. Even with the same Poland, in the first half they were not prepared for our pressure, they had to clear the ball from their own goal, because we did not give them the opportunity to play their game. We forced them to play a style that was unacceptable to them and it paid off completely.
"It's not just Edgaras working. Let's not forget the other members of the staff - Igoris Morinas, as well as Rokas Garastas, who works particularly with analysis, and Audrius Ramonas, who is not very visible, but also a very high-level specialist in his field. Marius Babravicius also works with the analysis system. Yes, it's a very young staff and we could say it's a risk of its own, but such changes were needed and personally, I am very pleased about that. These are dedicated people who know what the recipe for success is.
"Do you think the Lithuanian national team has a chance to start the World Cup qualifying cycle with a win?"
"Of course, they do. Playing at the LFF stadium is not common for any opponent, because very few national teams play on artificial turf. Even the Swiss had very serious problems here. In my opinion, this is one of our advantages. Another thing - Slovenia, although a well-balanced team, is certainly not a world giant. I don't think we should be afraid of them. We need to go, play, and win. I believe we can achieve that.
"The Slovenian national team has individually strong players. In your opinion, which one should be paid the most attention to?"
"First of all, I would highlight Josip Ilicic, who is probably one of the most important figures in Slovenia. Also, of course, Kevin Kampl should be mentioned."
"The Lithuanian national team has suffered painful losses. One of them is in the attack, where Lukas Spalvis will not play. How strongly can the loss of this striker affect the team?"
"Our coaches are generally facing many challenges now. The loss of Lukas Spalvis is one of them, because we are certainly not a team that has many strikers of that level. Any loss is painful for us, especially Lukas's. Yes, we probably don't have equivalent replacements, but there are other alternatives and we will have to rely on them. It is also somewhat worrying that Arvydas Novikovas, who always plays excellently for the national team, lacks playing practice. I hope that will not be a problem.
"13 players from the A League have been called up to the national team. Does this mean an increasing level of the Lithuanian football championship or a small choice abroad?"
"The competition in the A League this year has increased as the number of teams has decreased. Competition is a welcome thing, but we can hardly say that the level of the Lithuanian championship has significantly increased. As of today, the situation is such that the options for selecting national team candidates are limited, so there are many players from the A League, as we simply do not have many representatives in strong foreign championships.
"Finally, of course, the question about the team's chances... Will we play in the 2018 World Cup?"
"A provocative question. If you listen to common sense - probably not, but if you listen to the heart, which often clashes with reality in football matters, then yes." (Smiles)
Aivaras Katutis
