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The winner of Group D of the Baltic League may be decided this Sunday in Riga. The fight for the first place in the group will be between two teams whose relationship was not finally determined two weeks ago – the home team "Skonto" club and Vilnius "Vėtra".
Skonto Stadium in Riga Baltic Football League Round 3 matches Riga - Vilnius (Kick-off - 14:00)
In their previous encounter on March 18 in Vilnius, the match ended in a 1-1 draw. The guests from Latvia took the lead after Aleksejs Višnakovs' goal in the 20th minute, but "Vėtra" did not give up and equalized rightfully in the 70th minute thanks to Vitalis Stankevičius.
To prepare for the return match at home, the Latvian club had little time as 12 team players represented the Latvian national and youth teams, and Georgian Zaali Eliava was called up to the Georgian national team.
In this match, Skonto will be without injured Ivan Lukjanov and Kristaps Blanco, but Slovakian winger Marian Sluka and defender Marian Dirnbah are ready to play.
Meanwhile, the "Vėtra" team prepared for the match in Palanga since Thursday and arrived in Riga on Saturday with the determination to avenge the frustrating draw at home.
"The team has a fighting spirit, everyone is determined to prove that we are stronger. In Vilnius, we had an advantage against Skonto, but we didn't capitalize on our opportunities. I hope we will do better in Riga and celebrate a significant victory," said Vėtra head coach Aleksandras Tarchanovas to the club's official website.
The Vilnius club's strategist also revealed what strengths need to be overcome to defeat the opponent: "Our main goal is to stop their fast counter-attacks on the sides of the field, as most of the dangers to our goal arose from there. Skonto emphasizes high passes forward, where the very tall forward Kalninš plays. And of course, it is very important to play carefully after set-pieces, as tall midfielders constantly come into the penalty area."
In the match against Skonto, Vėtra will have defender Andrius Skerla, who represented the Lithuanian national team this week, but the team will be without not only Dejan Miloševski, who injured his thigh earlier, but also another defender from Macedonia, Bobi Božinovski, who also suffered a foot injury.
Possible team lineups:
"Skonto": Doroševs; Usanovs, Pjačeks, Gamezardašvili, Eliava; Astafjevs, Morozs, Perepļotkins, Višņakovs; Kalniņš, Dirnbah
"Vėtra": Žutautas; Sasnauskas, Skerla, Raliukonis, Jankauskas, Pedro; Panka, Juška, Butrimavičius; Severino, Stankevičius
