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Today in the evening in Tallinn, the first official matches of the new season will be played by Vilnius "Vėtra", which will face off against the bronze medalists of last season's Estonian championship - Tallinn "Flora". EuroFootball.com provides a detailed overview of both teams before the upcoming match and presents the probable starting lineups of the teams.
Baltic Football League Group D Matchday 1
Tallinn "" - Vilnius ""
(Kick-off - 18:00 Lithuania time)
Tallinn “Flora”
Although the Tallinn team finished third in the Estonian football championship last season, it does not mean that this team is significantly weaker than the top two teams in the country. The main reason the team struggled last season was the lack of experience, but compared to last season, the composition of "Flora" has not changed significantly, so the core of the team has been playing together for the second year and this could be a significant advantage in the early matches of the Baltic League. A good example is that in preparation for the season, "Flora" defeated the other Tallinn team "TVMK" in friendly matches, which they lost to five times last season.
However, "Flora" head coach Pasi Rautiainen stated before the start of the championship that the team's main goal this season is to perform well in the national championship, so it is possible that viewers will not see all the key players of the Estonian team in the first Baltic League match.
Additionally, several injured players will not be able to help the Estonian team. Currently, due to injuries, the attacking leader of "Flora" Večeslav Zahovaiko and Estonian national team forward Kristenas Viikmäe are unable to play. There are also gaps in the defense of "Flora" as three main defenders Sander Post, Alo Bärengrub, and Martin Hurt are currently injured. Defenders Andrėjus Mazurketivšas and Siimas Roop are also unable to play.
According to the latest information, the Estonian club will field a very young lineup, as confirmed by the team's head coach.
"We will field a very young team. For various reasons, many of the key players of the main team are missing," said P. Rautiainen. - "Some are injured, others are recovering from injuries, and the third are sick. Among those absent are Tomas Sirevičius, Martin Reim, and Aiko Orgla. Zahovaiko, Mazurkevitšo, Viikmae, Barengrubo, and Roop will definitely not be on the field."
Projected lineup (according to EuroFootball.com partners SoccerNet.ee): Mihkel Aksalu; Teet Allas, Tonis Vanna, Tomas Sirevicius, Andrei Sidorenkov; Enver Jääger, Martin Vunk, Martin Reim, Gert Kams; Juha Hakola, Jarmo Ahjupera
"Vėtra"
Like the Tallinn club, Vilnius "Vėtra", which finished third in the last "A Lyga" championship, completed their preparation for the new season with an easy victory against a weak Klaipėda "Atlantas" last week. Prior to that, the Vilnius team participated in a training camp in Turkey, where they played friendly matches against teams such as Moscow "Spartak", Moscow "Torpedo", Moscow "Dynamo", and Vladivostok "Luch-Energia".
Before the new season, "Vėtra" theoretically strengthened more than any other Lithuanian club and nurtures very ambitious plans. During the offseason, the team was reinforced by former "Nevėžis" striker Vitalis Stankevičius, who has already become the most productive player in friendly matches and should replace last season's club attacking leader Sergey Kuznetsov.
Last week, the Vilnius club also announced that they had signed a two-year contract with the Lithuanian national team defender Andrius Skerla, but the player has so far represented his new team only once, playing in a reserve match against "Atlantas", so it is not yet clear whether head coach Aleksandras Tarchanovas will risk letting the experienced player onto the field in the first Baltic League match.
In this match, "Vėtra" will definitely not be able to rely on Macedonian legionnaire Bobis Božinovskis, who suffered an injury in a friendly match against "Atlantas" and is not yet ready to play.
Projected lineup: Vaidas Žutautas; Pedro, Andrius Skerla, Algis Jankauskas, Nerijus Sasnauskas; Mindaugas Panka, Gediminas Butrimavičius, Julius Raliukonis, Dejan Milošeski; Lima Severino, Vitalis Stankevicius
