© lff.lt/E. Žaldario
On Thursday, the Executive Committee of the Lithuanian Football Federation (LFF) held a remote meeting where the new coaching staff of the Lithuanian men's national team was approved. The head coach of the national team will be former Lithuanian footballer Valdas Ivanauskas, replacing the previous coach Valdas Urbonas. The coaching staff also includes assistant coach Tomas Ražanauskas, goalkeeper coach Audrius Ramonas, and fitness coach Thomas Klimmeckas from Germany. Contracts have been signed with the coach and his staff until the end of this qualifying cycle.
"We congratulate the new coaching staff and wish them success in their work. The first matches are just around the corner, so we hope for a smooth start and for the national team to open their points account in the World Cup qualifying matches," said LFF General Secretary Edgaras Stankevičius.
Prior to taking on the role of national team coach, V. Ivanauskas coached the Lithuanian under-19 national team. It was also confirmed during the meeting that the team will be led by Tomas Ražanauskas, with assistance from Virginijus Liubšys and goalkeeper training by Algirdas Surgautas.
For V. Ivanauskas, coaching the national team is not a new experience - he was part of the coaching staff from 2003 to 2005, assisting the head coach at that time. Throughout his coaching career, V. Ivanauskas has worked in clubs in Lithuania, Scotland, Germany, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, Cyprus, and Poland. As a coach, he won the Scottish Cup with Edinburgh's Hearts in 2006 and became the Lithuanian champion and LFF Cup winner with FBK Kaunas in 2004.
The first test for the new coaching staff will be on September 2nd, when the Lithuanian national team faces Northern Ireland in the World Cup qualifying match. Later, the team will play against Bulgaria (September 5th) and the new European champion Italy (September 8th). At 2 PM, a press conference will be broadcast on the "Lithuanian Football" YouTube channel to introduce the new national team coach.
