Auda strengthened their grip on third place in the Tonybet Virslīga after defeating BFC Daugavpils 1-0 at Skonto Stadium, despite heavily rotating their squad ahead of Thursday’s crucial UEFA Conference League second-leg clash against Romanian giants FCSB.
With Thursday’s UEFA Conference League second leg against FCSB firmly in mind, head coach Didier Zanetti heavily rotated his side. Several regular starters, including Kader Kone, Nils Toms Puriņš, Barthelemy Diedhiou and Edvin Bongemba, began the match on the bench, while Eduards Dašķevičs was not included in the matchday squad. Of the players who started in the famous win in Bucharest, only Moussa Ouedraogo, Tin Hrvoj and Youba Traore retained their places in the starting eleven.
Daugavpils created the first major opportunity of the match through Daniel Kiwinda, who raced clear following a quick counter-attack. However, the striker took a heavy touch as he approached the goalkeeper and was unable to get his shot away. Kiwinda then went to ground after slight contact, but the referee waved away appeals for a penalty.
Although the visitors enjoyed promising moments, it was Auda who broke the deadlock in the 37th minute. Wally Fofana’s effort was parried by goalkeeper Jānis Beks, but 20-year-old Frenchman Henoc Lusweki reacted quickest to the rebound, calmly firing home from close range to score his first ever Virslīga goal.
Daugavpils believed they had equalised shortly after the restart when Kiwinda beat his marker and finished confidently after a clever piece of skill inside the penalty area. However, the assistant referee’s flag was already up for offside, and the goal was correctly ruled out.
The visitors continued to search for an equaliser, with Joel Yakubu forcing Raivo Stūriņš into an important save before late pressure nearly paid off. In stoppage time, Glebs Mihalcovs met a cross with a powerful header, but Stūriņš produced an excellent save to preserve Auda’s clean sheet.
At the other end, substitute Kader Kone was denied by Beks from close range, while Diedhiou also went close with a long-range effort that flew over the crossbar.
Auda comfortably managed the closing stages to record their third consecutive victory in all competitions, including last week’s memorable win over FCSB.
The result moves Auda onto 43 points from 24 matches, strengthening their hold on third place. They now sit 12 points clear of fourth-placed Liepāja before turning their full attention to Thursday’s UEFA Conference League return leg in Skonto Stadium in Rīga.
Daugavpils, meanwhile, slipped to fifth after Liepāja’s victory over Jelgava earlier in the day.
FK Auda vs BFC Daugavpils – 1-0 (1-0)
Goal: Luswecki 37′
| # | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  RFS |
23 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 55 | 16 | 39 | 59 |
| 2 |  Riga FC |
23 | 18 | 4 | 1 | 68 | 20 | 48 | 58 |
| 3 |  FK Auda |
23 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 38 | 26 | 12 | 43 |
| 4 |  FK Liepāja |
23 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 30 | 34 | -4 | 31 |
| 5 |  BFC Daugavpils |
24 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 29 | 30 | -1 | 30 |
| 6 |  Super Nova |
23 | 8 | 3 | 12 | 25 | 35 | -10 | 27 |
| 7 |  FS Jelgava |
24 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 24 | 41 | -17 | 25 |
| 8 |  Grobiņa |
23 | 4 | 8 | 11 | 15 | 35 | -20 | 20 |
| 9 |  FK Tukums 2000 |
23 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 38 | 47 | -9 | 17 |
| 10 |  Ogre United |
23 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 21 | 59 | -38 | 13 |
