In the Lithuanian TOPsport A Lyga Matchday 7 match, FK Kauno Žalgiris ended FC Hegelmann’s five-game winning streak by defeating the league leaders 3-1.
Both teams had finished in the top three last season, but FC Hegelmann started the current season stronger, winning five of their first six league games and sitting at the top of the table. Meanwhile, Kauno Žalgiris was on an unbeaten streak, although three of their four games during that stretch ended in goalless draws.
Last season, FK Kauno Žalgiris won the season series against these two teams, securing victories in two of the four encounters, while the other two matches ended in a draw and one win for Hegelmann.
Kauno’s manager, Eivinas Černiauskas, made one change to the starting lineup, bringing Romualdas Jansonas back after he was benched for the first time this season in the last game. FC Hegelmann, on the other hand, made three changes, with Klaudijus Upstas, Patrick Popescu, and Rasheed Yusuf—who scored the winning goal in the previous match—returning to the starting eleven.
During the first half at the Darius and Girėnas Stadium, both teams hit the post, but it was Kauno Žalgiris who scored the opening goal just before halftime. Following a lengthy VAR review, the referee awarded a penalty for a handball, which Amine Benchaib converted, marking his fourth goal of the season.
At the start of the second half, Kauno Žalgiris thought they had scored again, but that goal was disallowed for offside. Shortly thereafter, Nigerian Rasheed Yusuf found the net to equalize the score for Hegelmann, marking his third goal in four games.
In the 71st minute, Kauno Žalgiris reclaimed the lead when full-back Haymenn Bah-Traore joined the attack, found himself in the penalty area, and scored from a sharp angle, making it 2-1.
Hegelmann had two excellent chances late in the game to equalize, but ultimately, Kauno Žalgiris added another goal. Substitute Nidas Vošylius was fouled in the opposition box, leading to a second penalty kick being awarded. Vilius Armanavičius stepped up and scored, marking his first goal of the season.
With this victory, Kauno Žalgiris extended its unbeaten streak to five games, while Hegelmann’s impressive five-game winning streak came to an end.
FK Kauno Žalgiris vs FC Hegelmann – 3:1 (1:0)
Goals: Benchaib 45+6′, Bah-Traore 71′, Armanavičius 90+1′ | Yusuf 56′
Yellow Card: Edokpolor 89′ | Armalas 45′, Upstas 45+6, Azouazi 85′
KAU: Mikelionis – Bah-Traore, Hernandez, Tolordava, Edokpolor – Ourega (Armanavičius 73′), Pavlovic (Paulauskas 73′), Sirgedas – Černych ( Chogadze 78′), Jansonas (Burdzilauskas 73′), Benchaib (Vošylius 86′)
HEG: Bražinskas – Upstas, Djoric, Armalas, Duke – Shchedryi (Gabriel 75′), Antanavičius (Azouazi 80′), Kojic, Popescu (Kazlauskas 66′) – Yusuf (Njoya 66′), Ribeiro
| # | Club | GP | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Kauno Žalgiris | 13 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 14 | 27 |
| 2 | Hegelmann FC | 13 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 27 |
| 3 | FK Sūduva | 12 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 24 |
| 4 | FA Šiauliai | 13 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 21 |
| 5 | FK Panevėžys | 13 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 18 |
| 6 | FC Džiugas Telšiai | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 18 |
| 7 | FK Žalgiris | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 15 |
| 8 | FK Banga Gargždai | 13 | 4 | 3 | 6 | -3 | 15 |
| 9 | FK Riteriai | 13 | 2 | 4 | 7 | -8 | 10 |
| 10 | DFK Dainava Alytus | 12 | 0 | 2 | 10 | -16 | 2 |