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Lithuanian national football team players stated in an interview with the media after the match with Greece that they managed to maintain possession of the ball quite well, but what was mostly lacking was sharper play in attack.
Captain and defender Marius Stankevicius: "It's embarrassing to lose again. There is no excuse because we are where we are. There were interesting moments that we played quite well. However, there is room for improvement. Sometimes there was a lack of quality, sometimes we overdid it. Especially since there are many young players who will lead the team forward in the future. We made mistakes in some episodes where we shouldn't have."
Greece's team did not create many chances. The goal was unfortunate, a lapse. At the very end, the opponents could have scored again, but our minds were already in attack and we left ourselves open in defense.
The coach wanted us to maintain possession of the ball, for me as a fullback to take on more responsibility. That went quite well, but the match was not the best. We didn't do what Lithuania expects from us. But the essence remains the same. We want to improve and enhance our football. Perhaps there is not yet enough confidence in the young players. However, in our team, we are all equal. We must take responsibility together."
Defender Valdemar Borovskij: "I think the match was quite good. We attacked, had chances. In the first half, the opponents had only one real chance and they scored. As always, we went to collect three points. We tried to attack, to play beautiful football. It's very pleasant to return to the national team. Thank you to the fans for their support."
Forward Deivydas Matulevicius: "Greek football has always been more defensive. It's hard to break them down. We had several chances, but it didn't work out. A bit of luck was missing. I think we looked better, but the Greeks took advantage of their chance. We didn't capitalize on ours. But I think we are moving in the right direction. We were not afraid to hold the ball, we tried to play football."
Defender Mindaugas Kalonas: "We controlled the game more, but one mistake determined the entire course of the match. We tried everything, including counterattacking. However, the Greeks were very well prepared. Maybe there was a lack of aggressiveness and faster play in attack. At the beginning of the match, I expected a pass back, so I was half a step forward. The coach asked us not to drop our heads after the match. There are still four matches left, we will fight for third place."
Defender Edgaras Cesnauskis: "It was an evenly matched contest. Neither team had many chances. It's a pity that we made one mistake that determined the result. Precision was lacking in attack. In the middle of the field, we kept the ball, everything was good. But there was a lack of the final pass, the final shot. Despite the result, we felt the support of the fans."
Goalkeeper Emilijus Zubas: "I wanted to win or at least play on equal terms. We lost 0:1, but the initiative was at least ours in the second half. It's a shame we couldn't score. I expected to have more work. The opponents were favorites, but they had only a few attacks, but scored. We didn't quite communicate well with Saulius Mikoliunas, maybe I could have stayed in goal - and the goal would not have happened. I think we really deserved a draw. There was a lack of sharpness in front of the opponents' goal."
Defender Tadas Kijanskas: "I think the match was quite evenly matched. The Greeks gave us the initiative. It was always difficult for us to play as the 'first number.' We tried to create chances, to hold the ball. But we couldn't create big chances at the Greeks' goal. There was a lack of finishing sharpness in attack. The coach gave positive feedback about the match, seeing the positives in our game. Of course, a loss is a loss, so there's not much to be happy about."
