Decisive day in Rīga and Kaunas as two Futsal Euro Groups reaches it’s climax

Two of the four group stages of the UEFA Futsal European Championship will conclude today with decisive matches in Rīga and Kaunas, as groups A and B reach their final round and quarterfinal places are decided. The day begins in Rīga, where Latvia national futsal team host Croatia national futsal team at Arena Riga in a direct battle for a place in the quarterfinals. Three hours later, 266 kilometres south in Kaunas, the Lithuania national futsal team will play their final group match against Armenia national futsal team, still clinging to slim theoretical hopes of advancing.

Latvia opened the tournament one week ago with a historic result, becoming the first nation in European Championship history to record a clean-sheet victory in their debut match, defeating Georgia national futsal team 4-0. Four days later, they faced group favourites France national futsal team. Latvia created several clear chances in the first half but failed to convert, and those missed opportunities proved costly after the break, as France took control and secured a 5-0 victory.

Speaking to Baltic Football News after that match, Latvia players Miks Babris and Renards Ūdris were honest saying that only victory would be the correct mindset heading into the final group game. That decisive day has now arrived.

Croatia enter the match after drawing both of their group games so far, first 2-2 against France and then another 2-2 draw with Georgia. In their most recent fixture, Croatia came close to securing victory but missed a six-metre penalty with just over a minute remaining. Ranked 14th in the FIFA futsal rankings, Croatia are competing in their seventh European Championship finals. They have progressed from the group stage only twice, with their best finish coming in 2012, when they placed fourth on home soil. Croatia need a win today to reach the quarterfinals – something they failed to achieve at the previous two European Championships.

For Latvia, the stakes are historic. A place in the quarterfinals would mark a landmark achievement for the country’s futsal programme. While a draw would be sufficient for Latvia to advance, player Viktors Kuļepovs stated after the France match that the team must approach the game with a winning mentality rather than playing for a draw, noting that Croatia will arrive with exactly the same mindset.

This will be the third meeting between Latvia and Croatia in futsal. Their previous encounter dates back to 2009, when Croatia claimed a 2-0 victory. Latvia’s current Football Federation president Vadims Ļašenko featured as a player in that match. Kick-off at Arena Riga is scheduled for 17:30 local time.

In the other Group A fixture, France will face Georgia in Kaunas as they look to secure first place in the group.

Meanwhile, in Group B, Lithuania’s task is far more complex. The hosts opened their debut European Championship with a dramatic 3-3 draw against Czech Republic national futsal team, before suffering defeat to Ukraine national futsal team. Although qualification remains mathematically possible, the scenario is extremely demanding. Lithuania must defeat group leaders Armenia by at least four goals, while also hoping that Czechia beat Ukraine. Any other result in that match would see Ukraine advance as the second team from the group.

If Czechia do win, Lithuania would then need to defeat Armenia by at least three goals more than Czechia’s margin against Ukraine.

Armenia have been one of the major surprises of the tournament. In their European Championship debut, they secured two wins as underdogs and sealed first place in the group after just two matches. As a result, Armenia are already guaranteed a quarterfinal meeting with either Latvia or Croatia.

The match between Lithuania and Armenia will kick off at 20:30 at Žalgiris Arena, marking the first-ever futsal meeting between the two nations. Lithuania will be without one of their key players, Vladimir Derendiajev, who is suspended after receiving two yellow cards. Derendiajev is Lithuania’s top scorer at the tournament with two goals.

At the same time, Arena Riga will host the Group B parallel fixture between Ukraine and Czechia, completing a dramatic final day of group-stage action at the UEFA Futsal European Championship.