© EuroFootball.com
On April 25th, on Wednesday, at the stadium of Marijampolė Football Club, the LFF Cup semi-final match will take place between Marijampolė's "Sūduva" and VMDF "Žaliris" clubs. The first match in Vilnius ended with a 1-0 victory for the hosts. Fksuduva.lt spoke with several football experts about their thoughts on the upcoming match.
Long-time head coach of the Lithuanian national team Algimantas Liubinskas:
"I can say that the result in Vilnius is not convincing. "Sūduva" has better chances and possibilities to advance, but they still need to implement that. I saw both of "Sūduva's" matches against "Žalgiris" and I did not like their defensive game, the actions of the goalkeeper. Almost every sharpening situation posed a danger.
In attack, R.Beniušis and R.Ledesma played. The latter walked on the field like a veteran, but that should not be the case. The matches of "Žalgiris" against "Šiauliai" and "Reo" showed that their defense is also weak. Only "Šiauliai" took advantage of their chances, while "Reo" did not, so they did not take points from "Žalgiris". Against the Vilnius team, you need to play fast because neither L.Peričius nor A.Jankauskas are fast defenders. Going back to "Sūduva", I believe that a team striving for the title of champions should defend better and move in attack. R.Ledesma's movement should be significantly better, he is not yet a veteran to play like that. However, there is no doubt, this player is one of the best in Lithuania and "Žalgiris" will have to think about how to "neutralize" him. "Sūduva" will play at home and I don't think they should choose a cautious playing style. Winning at home against "Žalgiris" 2-0 is definitely an achievable task. It will be a very interesting match.
Director of Alytus "Dainava" club Antanas Makštutis:
"I think that the Marijampolė team has already suffered enough losses to "Žalgiris", this time the match will be at home. The teams are equal, many things will determine success. "Žalgiris" won the first match with a score of 1-0, so "Sūduva" needs to play wisely and be psychologically prepared to score a goal. A fast goal would be very needed, it would create tension. It is difficult to predict anything, "Ekranas", "Sūduva", "Žalgiris" are equal teams that take points from each other. I will definitely attend the match, it will be an interesting battle.
Assistant coach of the Lithuanian national team Vitalijus Stankevičius:
"I think that "Sūduva" comes to play with not the best mood, as they unexpectedly lost to "Kruoja". Of course, "Kruoja" should not be underestimated, but the loss was unexpected. Meanwhile, "Žalgiris" managed to win a tough match against "Reo". In the first semi-final match, "Sūduva" did not shine at the beginning, but later they sorted themselves out and played decent football. Tomorrow everything will depend on how the team deals with their tasks. I don't know why this happens, but "Sūduva" both last year and this year before the season looks great, but later there is inconsistency in the game. I wouldn't say that "Žalgiris" has advanced to the next stage. "Sūduva" plays at home and anything can happen, but the chances of the Vilnius club are higher as they won the first match. Of course, I will watch the match at the stadium, as it will be an interesting game. There are many candidates for the men's national team and youth national teams in both squads.
Goalkeeper of Panevėžys "Ekranas" and the Lithuanian national team Mantas Savėnas:
"Žalgiris" currently has a more favorable position, as they won the first match. Of course, the result is very close, but better than, let's say, 2-1. However, "Sūduva" plays at home and, as far as I know, at the main stadium, while "Žalgiris" always plays on artificial turf. Therefore, I think that "Sūduva" should advance to the next stage.
Coach of Pakruojis "Kruoja" team Aidas Dambrauskas:
"It is a battle of equal opponents. "Sūduva" will be the host, playing on grass, while "Žalgiris" always plays on artificial turf. This will be an advantage for the Marijampolė club. In addition, "Sūduva" will try to "make up" for the loss to "Kruoja" and prove their superiority.
Coach of "Šiauliai" team Deivis Kančelskis:
"Perhaps "Žalgiris" has the advantage, but "Sūduva" will play at home and at the stadium. "Žalgiris" has its advantages, but the teams have already played against each other twice, so they should have analyzed each other's game well. In my opinion, the winner will be determined by how each team's leaders perform. The outcome will be greatly influenced by how players like R.Ledesma, A.Urbšys, T.Eliošius perform for "Sūduva", and T.Pekas, M.Kuklys, C.Elliot for "Žalgiris". The teams know each other well, so personalities will play a significant role."
