© EuroFootball.com
On Tuesday, the presentation of the VMFD "Žalgiris" team for the upcoming season took place at the Vilnius city municipality.
The event was attended by the mayor of the capital Artūras Zuokas, team manager Vilma Venslovaitienė, sports director Mindaugas Nikoličius, and head coach Marekas Zubas.
To the journalists gathered at the municipality, V. Venslovaitienė revealed the team's marketing and budget.
"We strive to work with sponsors on a continuous basis. We have a new information partner delfi.lt. We are still looking for a main sponsor.
This year's team budget is higher than last year's. It amounts to 9 million litas. Vilnius city municipality allocated 3 million to us. We hope that in the new season there will be many trips, flights, and outings," Venslovaitienė said.
"Žalgiris" manager also named the main goals of the season. "We aim to reach the group stage of the UEFA Europa League, win the Lithuanian championship, the LFF Cup, and the Super Cup," V. Venslovaitienė added.
Meanwhile, Vilnius mayor A. Zuokas promised to continue supporting the team, start the construction of a new stadium, and help reclaim the "Žalgiris" brand.
"Vilnius needs a professional football team that plays in Europe. It would raise the level of Lithuanian football.
We hope to resolve the legal dispute over the "Žalgiris" brand this spring. By summer, its rights should belong to the city municipality and the Vilnius football association "Žalgiris."
We also hope to conclude negotiations with the owners of the "Žalgiris" stadium. We plan to start building a 10-12 thousand-seat stadium in place of the old stadium.
The government supports the idea of a national stadium. Construction of a 25 thousand-seat multifunctional sports center should start next year," promised A. Zuokas.
The team's head coach M. Zubas talked about the team's preparation for the season and composition.
"I am satisfied with the team's preparation for the new season. The training camp in Cyprus was great - we trained on good pitches, played against strong teams.
This year, many new players joined the team. This should change the playing style.
There have been changes in the defense. Brazilian Andrezinho replaced the loaned-out Pavel Komolov and Mantas Kuklys. The experienced Deividas Šemberas also strengthened the defense line," said the "Žalgiris" coach.
When asked who would replace last season's capital team's most productive player Kamil Bilinskis, the head coach said: "K. Bilinskis and the team's new 19-year-old Kristis Andreou have similarities. He is very talented and tries to prove it on the field. However, when thinking about Europe, we need a high-level experienced forward."
A detailed presentation of the team will soon be presented in a video report.
