Riga FC and Kauno Žalgiris chase first Conference League victories

Latvian champions Riga FC and Lithuanian champions Kauno Žalgiris continue their UEFA Conference League campaigns on Thursday evening, with both Baltic representatives looking to secure their first victories in the league phase. Riga FC travel to Cyprus to face Pafos FC, while Kauno Žalgiris welcome Norwegian side Brann to Kaunas. Both matches kick off at 19:45 Baltic time.

Riga FC face a familiar opponent at the Alphamega Stadium in Limassol, having previously met Pafos several times in friendly matches during their training camps in Cyprus. However, Thursday’s encounter will mark the first competitive meeting between the two clubs.

Adrian Guľa’s side opened their historic Conference League league-phase campaign with a 1-1 home draw against Kazakhstan’s Kairat Almaty. Despite dominating large periods of the match at Skonto Stadium, the Latvian champions had to settle for a point, with Salah Oulad M’Hand scoring their only goal.

Their Cypriot opponents began the competition with a 1-3 away defeat against Italian Serie A side Atalanta in Bergamo. Nevertheless, Pafos arrive with considerable European experience, having competed in the UEFA Champions League last season.

The Cypriot club, winners of two domestic cups and the 2024/25 league title, also boast several high-profile players, including Brazilian defender David Luiz. The former Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal centre-back is unlikely to feature against Riga, however, after being substituted with an injury during the first half against Atalanta.

Another notable name in the Pafos squad is Polish goalkeeper Radoslaw Majecki, who joined the club on loan from French Ligue 1 side Monaco during the summer, with an option to make the move permanent. The 26-year-old has made 37 Ligue 1 appearances across spells with Monaco and Brest over the previous three seasons, while also featuring eight times in the Champions League for Monaco during the 2024/25 campaign.

Pafos have collected 11 points from their opening six domestic league matches, placing them fifth in the standings, four points behind leaders AEL Limassol. Their leading scorer across all competitions this season is Brazilian forward Lelê, who is on loan from Fluminense and has already found the net five times.

The Cypriot champions are managed by 54-year-old Portuguese coach Ricardo Sa Pinto, who took charge in April. The experienced manager previously led another Cypriot club, APOEL, to the domestic championship.

Meanwhile, Riga FC arrive in Cyprus following a hard-fought comeback victory over Super Nova in the Latvian Virslīga. Having fallen behind, the Riga side overturned the deficit in the second half to secure three important points and maintain their pursuit of another domestic title.

Guľa will once again be without injured duo Paulo Eduardo and Orlando Galo, while Andres Salazar serves the second match of his three-game suspension. However, there is positive news regarding Caio Ferreira, who has recovered from injury and will likely be available for selection. His return provides a welcome boost to Riga’s squad depth after the Latvian champions had only five outfield substitutes available against Kairat.

The match will also mark a return to Cyprus for Guľa, who previously managed Apollon Limassol.

Approximately 2,500 kilometres north of Limassol, Kauno Žalgiris will play their first home match of the Conference League league phase at the Darius and Girėnas Stadium, where they host Norwegian Cup runners-up Brann.

The Lithuanian champions endured a difficult introduction to the competition last week, suffering a 0-4 defeat away against Premier League side Brighton. Željko Sopic’s team produced a determined defensive performance for much of the opening half, but two quick goals shortly before the interval put Brighton firmly in control. The English side added two more after the break to complete a convincing victory.

Thursday’s opponents, Brann, enjoyed a more successful start to their campaign, although their opening fixture against Gibraltar’s Lincoln Red Imps proved far from straightforward.

The Norwegian side fell behind in the 59th minute before Chilean midfielder Niklas Castro turned the match around with two goals, including the decisive strike in the 81st minute, to secure a narrow 2-1 home victory.

The two clubs enter the encounter in contrasting domestic form. Kauno Žalgiris have taken a major step towards securing back-to-back Lithuanian Toplyga titles after defeating title rivals Sūduva 1-0 away from home earlier this week. Renan Oliveira’s stoppage-time winner secured a fifth victory in their last six league matches and extended their advantage over nearest challengers Vilnius Žalgiris and Sūduva to four points.

Brann, meanwhile, have managed just one victory in their previous six Norwegian league fixtures, although that win came against Bodø/Glimt at the end of September. Their struggles continued over the weekend with a 3-1 away defeat against Valerenga.

After 23 rounds, Brann sit seventh in the Norwegian league standings, seven points behind fifth-placed Lillestrøm with seven matches remaining, leaving them with considerable ground to make up in the race for the higher positions.

Despite their inconsistent domestic form, Brann possess valuable experience in European competitions. This is their second consecutive season in the league phase of a UEFA club competition, having participated in the Europa League last season. The Norwegian side progressed to the knockout phase play-offs before being eliminated by Italian club Bologna, losing 0-2 on aggregate.

One player Kauno Žalgiris will need to pay particular attention to is 25-year-old Norwegian forward Noah Holm, who has scored ten goals across all competitions this season and is Brann’s leading goalscorer.