RFS have revealed their first pre-season opponents as they will face teams from each of the Baltic countries before travelling to the training camp in Turkey.
Once the clock strikes midnight on December 31, RFS’ 2025 season will be well in the past with the team eyeing a redemption year in 2026.
The win in the season’s closing Riga Derby showed glimpses of what Viktors Morozs’ side can achieve next season. Danger in the air, compact midfield run by the Serbs Stefan Panič and the summer addition Strahinja Rakič, threat caused on the counters by flashy Ismael Diomande, Cedric Kouadio, and in the middle of it all – their star Jānis Ikaunieks. This is the RFS we know.
However, Morozs has a lot of work to do to make performances like these a consistent feature next season, if they are to regain the Virslīga title and compete for a place in the final stages of the Conference League.
The pre-season will be the period for him to choose his circle of players whom he will trust to complete the roles assigned to them. The revaluation of players who spent their time out on loan last season will also be important. A close eye will surely be kept on Maksym Derkach, who showed his quality in the U20 World Cup and for FK Tukums, as well as Mikaze Nagasawa, Mohamed Kone, Jevgenijs Miņins, and Valerijs Lizunovs. Also, do not forget to add any new incomers.
The squad starts training in full on January 6, with the first match of the pre-season taking place on January 14 against Super Nova in Riga. It will be followed by trips to Paide on the 17th and 24th of January, where they will face Nõmme Kalju and Paide Linnameeskond. In between these trips, a game on January 21 against Grobiņa will take place in Riga.
These four games will be followed by a four-team tournament in Liepaja, with the teams yet to be officially confirmed. However, according to Nõmme Kalju’s Facebook post, the other three teams participating are FK Liepāja, FK Transinvest, and Nõmme Kalju. RFS will play twice there, first on January 28 and then on January 30.
On February 4, a game will be held against Vilnius Žalgiris. The time and place for this meeting is yet to be decided – either in Riga or Liepaja. The training camp in Turkey will follow with the fixture list of games set to be announced as the dates come closer.
The last match of the pre-season for the Latvian vice-champions will take place in LNK Sporta Parks on February 28 as they will take on Daugavpils a week before the new Virsliga season kicks off.
