Paņevežys start the league campaign with two defeats for the first time since 2020

In today’s A Lyga match, FC Hegelmann secured a 2-1 victory over FK Paņevežys thanks to a game-winning goal by Esmilis Kaušinis at the beginning of the second half.

Both teams entered this match having lost their first games of the season. Hegelmann suffered a 0-2 defeat against FK Banga Gargždai, while Paņevežys fell to FA Šiauliai with a score of 1-3.

Both teams had excellent opportunities to score at the start of the match. Hegelmann’s Rasheed Yusuf headed the ball onto the crossbar, and on the opposite end, Kwadmo Asamoah narrowly missed a chance from a great position.

Hegelmann took the lead at the end of the first half. A cross from the left side found Leo Ribeiro, whose weak shot from close range was saved by Černauskas. The rebound was opportunistically tapped in by Armalas, marking his first goal of the season.

At the start of the second half, FK Paņevežys equalized when Isaac Asante’s free-kick was redirected into the net by Justinas Januševskis, who had returned to Paņevežys this offseason after playing three years with FK Sūduva and FK Banga.

However, the celebrations from Paņevežys fans and staff were short-lived. Just two minutes later, Hegelmann’s Esmilis Kaušinis received a pass just outside the box, turned, took a touch, and unleashed a powerful strike into the bottom corner. The Paņevežys goalkeeper had no chance to stop it, allowing Hegelmann to quickly regain the lead.

FK Paņevežys could not find the equalizer, marking the first time since the 2020 season that the 2023 A Lyga champions began the league campaign with two consecutive defeats.

Hegelmann will host FA Šiauliai in their last game before the international break on Saturday, while Paņevežys will seek their first win on Sunday against FK Sūduva.

FC Hegelmann vs FK Paņevežys 2:1 (1:0)
Goals: Armalas 45+2′, Kaušinis 54′ | Januševskis 52′
Yellow Card: Duke 39′, Armalas 51′, Kojic 79′, Popescu 89′ | Vaičekauskas 90+4′
HEG: Bražinskas – Upstas, Armalas, Djoric, Mulder – Kaušinis (Slendzoka 69′), Kojic, Antanavičius, Duke (Popescu 62′) – Leo Ribeiro (Wesley Gabriel 90+5′), Yusuf (Noya 62′)
PAN: Černiauskas – Rasimavičius, Klimavičius, Januševskis, Krasniqi (Balšys 76′), Kerkez – Asante, Dante (Dzinga 89′), Asamoah (Vaičekauskas 63′), Kouadio (Puikis 76′) – Steponavičius (De Vega 76′)
Referee: Donatas Rumšas