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San Marino hosted the 7th match of the qualification group of the European Youth (up to 21) Championship, in which the local team faced the Lithuanian youth team.
The guests managed to secure a tough victory, recovering from a goal conceded at the end of the first half and scoring twice in the middle of the second half to defeat the representatives of the small state.
In other group matches, Belgium crushed Serbia and Montenegro 4-0 at home. However, with 9 points, the Serbs remained the leaders of the group. Belgians and Lithuanians share the second place with 7 points each, while Spain occupies the third place with 5 points. Bosnia and San Marino have not yet scored.
U-21 San Marino 1 - 2 Lithuania U21 45' [1 - 0] Mattia Masi 69' [1 - 1] Tomas Mikuckis 73' [1 - 2] Artūras Rimkevičius (pen.)
The guests needed time to adjust to the pitch and slowly began to control the game. A. Rimkevičius had the first chance, but he missed wide against the goalkeeper.
As promised by the team's coach V. Stankevičius, the Lithuanians tried to attack through the wings. N. Mačiulis had some dangerous runs, but initially his shot missed and then Rimkevičius, who received the ball, was neutralized by the defenders.
The Lithuanian attacks continued and after playing an hour, D. Šernas had a chance, but his shot was caught by the goalkeeper. As the half came to an end, the hosts seem to have trusted their chances of winning.
San Marino organized dangerous counter-attacks and the defense of the Lithuanian national team began to make mistakes, leading to a penalty in added time - Masi took the shot first after Malinauskas saved and sent the ball into the net.
Immediately after the break, V. Stankevičius decided to strengthen the offense - Kavaliauskas and Ivaškevičius came onto the pitch instead of Lukša and Miceika. However, it was defender T. Mikuckis who took active actions with dangerous runs through the wing.
After an inaccurate shot by Žaliūkas following Mikuckis' pass, Mikuckis got involved in the attack again and after a combination on the wing, Rimkevičius headed wide. Just before the end of the first half, Rimkevičius was close to scoring again, but the ball passed by the goal.
However, Lithuanian efforts paid off: in the 69th minute, Mikuckis broke through on the wing and equalized, and shortly after, Rimkevičius earned a penalty and converted it himself. At the end of the match, Kavaliauskas could have increased the difference, but he missed the ball slightly.
Tomorrow, the national teams of these two countries will meet. The match begins at 21:30 Lithuanian time with live broadcast on TV3.
Composition of the Lithuanian youth team Malinauskas, Majus, Žaliūkas, Mikuckis, Kazlauskas, Miceika (45' Ivaškevičius), Lukša (45' Kavaliauskas), Panka, Šernas, Mačiulis (85' Pilibaitis), Rimkevičius.
