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The Lithuanian youth and national team arrived in Serbia and Montenegro on Thursday, where they will respectively face the national teams of these countries on Friday at 17:30 and Saturday at 21:30 local time. Before departing for the Serbian capital Belgrade, the head coach of the Lithuanian national team, Algimantas Liubinskas, stated that he cannot predict the result, but assured that the Lithuanian team will give their all against the Serbians. The coach expressed joy at the players' high ambitions and motivation, which are hardly influenced by monetary bonuses. "As we were preparing for the matches, the issue of bonuses was not the most relevant for us. You created a fuss about money," Liubinskas told the media representatives gathered at the airport. "I will repeat, in this cycle the team plays for different goals. Moreover, I must say that the federation is making efforts and, within its means, there is indeed a bonus system, which is about 10-15% higher than in the previous cycle." The coach regretted that when playing against the strongest team in their group, the national team will not have the strongest lineup. However, he added that in Belgrade, the Lithuanian team will play with their own goal and great desire. "The Serbian team has been extensively analyzed. I also attended the Lobanovsky tournament in Kiev. There could be changes in their lineup, as they lost both matches in Kiev to Poland and Ukraine. They tried many different players. For example, in the tournament, a 205 cm tall forward, Nikola Zigic, played. It is unclear whether he will also play in Belgrade or if the more technical Savo Milosevic will play," pondered the coach. "Nevertheless, the Serbian style of play hardly changes - they play an interesting tactical football. The play of central midfielders is particularly noticeable, as they do not have prominent full-backs. They often set up in what is called the diamond principle, with full-backs frequently joining the attack," Liubinskas spoke about the strong and weak points of the opponents. The fact that the Serbians also take the Lithuanians seriously, as stated by the coach, is evident from the interest of the opponents in the Lithuanian team: "For our match against Belarusians, the Serbians also sent their coach to watch. In Kiev, we had to interact with their players - they see us as competitors." "We can already play against good teams. We are toughened - we played against Spaniards, Portuguese, so we should not underestimate the Belarusians. I think there is that experience. And most importantly - there is no feeling of fear among the players. Through our slow work, conversations, we have changed consciousness, convinced them that there is nothing to fear. We can play against anyone, we can fight against anyone. Of course, there are other factors in sports - good refereeing, luck... In this tournament, no one has yet managed to score against the Serbians, maybe we will succeed?" Liubinskas hoped. A total of 18 national team players went to Serbia and Montenegro. In contrast to the previously announced extended list, this time the team does not include disqualified players M. Stankevicius, T. Zvirgzdaukis, R. Poska, and T. Danilevicius, the injured N. Barasa with a broken leg, and G. Padimanskas who will not play for at least a month due to a torn muscle and was replaced by V. Zutautas. By the way, the latter will also take Padimanskas' place in the Marijampole "Suduva", with which he signed a contract until the end of the season after leaving "Siauliai". D. Guscinas, who was not invited to play, did not live up to the coaches' expectations and was sent home. According to Liubinskas, Guscinas' preparation was about the same level as that of Suduva's forward T. Radzinevicius, but the choice was heavily influenced by the fact that the teenager is six years younger. Another forward, V. Kavaliauskas, will play against Serbia and Montenegro, but as expected, he will represent the youth team. This was confirmed by the national team coach, A. Liubinskas: "V. Kavaliauskas is going to Serbia, but he will play in the youth matches. He trained with the senior team, but integrating into the team is not a one-day task. For comparison, I can say that in the first camp before the matches against Belarus, Mantas Savenas felt uncomfortable, but in this camp he seemed much more confident." Composition of the Lithuanian national team for the matches against Serbia and Montenegro: Goalkeepers 1. Zydrunas Karcemarskas (Dynamo Moscow, Russia) 2. Vaidotas Zutautas (Suduva) Defenders 3. Aurelijus Skarbalius (Brondby, Denmark) 4. Rolandas Dziuksas (Saturn Moscow Oblast, Russia) 5. Andrius Skerla (Dunfermline, Scotland) 6. Gediminas Paulauskas (Ekranas) 7. Arunas Klimavicius (Ekranas) 8. Darius Zutautas (Alania Vladikavkaz, Russia) Midfielders 9. Saulius Mikoliunas (Hearts of Edinburgh, Scotland) 10. Deividas Semberas (CSKA Moscow, Russia) 11. Deividas Cesnauskis (Hearts of Edinburgh, Scotland) 12. Edgaras Cesnauskis (Dynamo Kiev, Ukraine) 13. Aidas Preiksaitis (Vetra) 14. Mantas Savenas (Ekranas) 15. Andrius Gedgaudas (Tom Tomsk, Russia) Forwards 16. Edgaras Jankauskas (Hearts of Edinburgh, Scotland) 17. Tomas Radzinevicius (Suduva) 18. Igoris Morinas (Zalgiris)
