Toplyga leaders Džiugas Telšiai held on for a 0-0 draw against Vilnius Žalgiris after a match in which the visitors created the better opportunities but were denied both by goalkeeper Marius Paukšte and a crucial VAR intervention.
From the opening whistle, Andrius Skerla’s side took control of possession and dictated the tempo, pinning the league leaders inside their own half for long stretches.
Žalgiris created the first dangerous chances through Liviu Antal. Early in the match the Romanian forward was denied by Džiugas goalkeeper Marius Paukšte with a low save, before later meeting an excellent cross from Dominik Franke following a strong run down the flank. Once again, however, Paukšte came out on top to keep the score level. The visitors continued to threaten before the interval.
Meanwhile the hosts answered with a couple of their own chances – Valentino Vermeulen fired narrowly wide from outside the penalty area, while Robertas Sobowale came close to breaking the deadlock with a well-struck free-kick that drifted just off target.
Džiugas offered little going forward during the opening period but nearly struck after the restart when Bacary Sane found himself in the opposition penalty area and fired narrowly wide of the post in one of the hosts’ best opportunities of the evening.
Žalgiris quickly responded and continued to create the clearer openings. Paulius Golubickas found himself in an excellent position at the edge of the box early in the second half, but his effort was struck straight at Paukšte, who once again proved equal to the task.
The visitors thought they had finally found the breakthrough in the 59th minute when Bryan Teixeira bundled the ball into the net. Celebrations, however, were cut short after a lengthy VAR review revealed that the Cape Verde player had handled the ball before scoring, resulting in the goal being disallowed.
That decision only increased the pressure from Žalgiris. During the closing stages they camped inside the Džiugas half and repeatedly searched for a late winner. Their best opportunity arrived after another dangerous delivery from Teixeira found Ukrainian forward Stanislav Bilennkyi, whose powerful header was kept out as Džiugas survived a frantic finish.
Despite dominating possession and producing the majority of the clear-cut chances, Žalgiris were forced to settle for a goalless draw.
The result keeps Džiugas at the top of the Toplyga table with 29 points after 19 rounds, while Žalgiris remain sixth with 25 points, four points behind the league leaders.
FC Džiugas Telšiai vs FK Žalgiris – 0-0 (0-0)
| # | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Džiugas Telšiai |
18 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 28 | 22 | 6 | 29 |
| 2 |  Kauno Žalgiris |
17 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 31 | 15 | 16 | 27 |
| 3 |  FK Banga |
18 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 19 | 13 | 6 | 27 |
| 4 |  FK Sūduva |
17 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 26 |
| 5 |  Transinvest |
16 | 7 | 4 | 5 | 24 | 21 | 3 | 25 |
| 6 |  FK Žalgiris |
18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 24 | 21 | 3 | 25 |
| 7 |  FC Hegelmann |
18 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 19 | 28 | -9 | 18 |
| 8 |  FK Panevėžys |
17 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 16 | 31 | -15 | 18 |
| 9 |  FA Šiauliai |
17 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 17 | 31 | -14 | 13 |
