© EuroFootball.com
One of the best Lithuanian football players of the past decade, Andrius Skerla, is ending his professional career, but he is not stepping away from football and "Žalgiris".
Clasping onto the coaching ladder at the age of 36, A. Skerla will now work as an assistant coach to Marek Zubo, the head coach of the "Žalgiris" team of the Vilnius City Football Society.
The Vilnius strategist called upon the experienced football player at the start of last season, delegating to him the duties of playing coach.
"The news of A. Skerla's career ending was unexpected for the team. When Andrius returned to Vilnius in 2012, we knew that he was already thinking about it. After the very tense season we allowed him to rest and calmly arrange his future plans.
Having made the final decision, A. Skerla decided to say goodbye to his professional player career this year. In his opinion, now is the most suitable time to do so.
We really wanted to continue to see such a person in "Žalgiris". We are happy that we quickly and easily found a mutual decision regarding further cooperation," said Mindaugas Nikoličius, the sports director of VMFD "Žalgiris".
A. Skerla's successful career lasted a whopping 17 years. The football player who played the most matches in the Lithuanian national team took his first professional steps precisely at "Žalgiris" in 1996.
At that time, the talent of the young man was quickly noticed by the famous Dutch club Eindhoven PSV. Starting his legionnaire career in 1997, A. Skerla helped the PSV team become the champion of the strongest Dutch league "Eredivisie" in 1999.
In 2000, the Lithuanian moved from the Netherlands to Scotland and represented the Dunfermline Athletic team there for 5 seasons. During this time, the defender played 169 matches and scored 2 goals.
In 2005, the football player's career turned to the Tomsk "Tom" unit in Russia. After not staying long in it, the player returned briefly to Lithuania in 2007 and defended the honor of the Vilnius "Vėtra" team. After spending years in his homeland, A.Skerla soared to the Kelces' "Korona" club in Poland, where he also spent one season.
In 2008, the football player moved to another Polish club - Bialystok's "Jagiellonia". Becoming one of the key figures in the team's victories and the fans’ favorite, A. Skerla established himself for a longer period, enriching his trophy collection by winning the Polish football cup and the Super Cup.
Having experienced wanderings abroad, the player decided to end his career where he started it. In the 2012 season, A. Skerla put on the green and white jersey after a sixteen-year break, which brought even more titles to one of Lithuania's best football players.
During the last two seasons of his career at "Žalgiris", A. Skerla won the Lithuanian Football Federation Cup twice, also lifting the trophies of the Super Cup and enjoying the most important victory - the Lithuanian Champions Cup, which he held in his hands for the first time.
"Andrius has always been a true emotional leader of the team. He is a true professional with great authority. He can only be spoken of in the best words. We are very grateful to him for his contribution to the victories, participation in the society's activities. It is desirable to see such people in football.
We are happy that Andrius decided to try himself in a new role. From now on, he becomes a full-fledged member of the coaching staff. The team's head coach Marekas Zubas is very pleased to be able to work together at a different level," said "Žalgiris" sports director M. Nikoličius about the changes in the team.
