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The Lithuanian national team found out the opponents in the 2014 World Cup European zone qualifying tournament. Our team will compete in Group G along with Greece, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia, and Liechtenstein.
The draw, which managed to avoid elite teams and, for example, the French who were only in the second strength basket, was celebrated by both LFF president Liutauras Varanavičius and coach Raimondas Žutautas.
"I rate the draw very positively. We got a group in which we have real hopes of competing. Our goal will be to take the second place in the team," Varanavičius optimistically said.
Zutautas seconded him: "I think the draw was successful - probably the most favorable group compared to others. Fortune smiled on us this time more than before when we had to face many powerful teams.
There are no weak teams in the group and we certainly do not underestimate our opponents. But there are also not significantly stronger opponents - like Spain in the previous cycle - or those who constantly reach the final stages.
The form of the Greek national team has declined lately, Slovakia has improved, this team performed very well in the latest world championships. We have previously defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina. Perhaps this team has strengthened, but I don't think it is stronger than, for example, the Czech Republic. The match with Latvia will be an additional intrigue, a kind of derby. Liechtenstein has already taught us a lesson, we cannot afford to repeat that.
There is still a lot of time until the next cycle, so there will be some changes in the team, with younger players entering. But I hope that the current team will mature more and be able to perform successfully.
