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After playing the second leg of the LFF Cup semifinals on Wednesday, the finalists of the tournament were revealed - Marijampolė's "Sūduva", who defeated Klaipėda's "Atlantas" 1-0 away, and Panevėžys "Ekranas", which also secured a minimal victory against the "Vilnius" team.
In the port city, the guests from Marijampolė scored a goal, as "Atlantas" had the advantage of Ivo Begičius's goal in the away match, and "Sūduva" reached their goal in the middle of the first half when Karolis Jasaitis directed the ball into the bottom corner of the goal with a single touch after Darius Maciulevičius broke through on the right side and passed it into the penalty area.
Algimantas Gabrys praised his players after the victory: "The team played disciplined like never before. They executed the plan set before the match. "Atlantas" had opportunities as well. But "Sūduva" defended discipline. Apart from the goal, the Sūduva players had several grateful opportunities to disarm "Atlantas" goalkeeper. The team spirit is high. For the second time in club history, we earned the right to play in the LFF Cup final."
"I am happy with the victory and that we managed to overcome the opponent's goalkeeper in such important matches. Of course, I wouldn't have done it without the fantastic pass from D. Maciulevičius. Today, the whole team was determined to achieve a result. We succeeded in that," said Karolis Jasaitis, the author of the winning goal.
Another team that played at home in the second leg was Panevėžys "Ekranas" - in an intense first match in the capital against "Vilnius" that ended in a 2-2 tie, they managed to secure a victory in the last minute. There were no surprises at the "Aukštaitijos" stadium, as the Panevėžys team not only kept their goal dry but also won thanks to Povilas Lukšys's goal in the final quarter of the match.
The Cup final will take place on October 21 at one of the neutral stadiums in Lithuania. The tournament winner will secure a ticket to the next season's UEFA Europa League, and "Sūduva" should be more motivated as if they defeat "Ekranas", who is likely to become the runner-up in the A lyga, the third place in representing the country in Europe will be given to the team that finishes third in the national championship, with Vilnius' "Vėtra" having the most realistic chances.
Wednesday's LFF Cup semifinal match statistics
Klaipėda "Žalgiris" stadium, 200 spectators Referee - Vitalijus Kazlauskas 0 - 1 (First leg 1-1, total score 1-2) 21' [0 - 1] Karolis Jasaitis
Panevėžys "Aukštaitijos" stadium, 1150 spectators Referee - Viktoras Chileckis 1 - 0 (First leg 2-2, total score 3-2) 73' [1 - 0] Povilas Lukšys
