The second lap of the Toplyga season begins this weekend with five fixtures across Saturday and Sunday.
Champions Kauno Žalgiris host bottom of the table side Riteriai on Saturday (14:15) at Darius ir Girėnas Stadium, with assistant coach Algis Jankauskas set to take charge from the technical area as head coach Eivinas Černiauskas serves a suspension. Kauno Žalgiris suffered their first league defeat of the campaign last week but remain among the division’s statistical leaders, while Riteriai arrive after two straight clean sheets in the league (as well as a player protest over unpaid wages) despite an injury to centre-back Amaras Drina. The clubs meet for the 44th time in the Lithuanian top flight, with the head-to-head record level at 17 wins apiece and nine draws.
Sūduva welcome Panevėžys on Saturday (14:15) at the Mantinga Football Arena indoor pitch in Marijampolė, with the match to be shown live on BTV. Sūduva ended the first round with back-to-back wins and have climbed to fourth on 13 points, collecting all three of their league victories at home. Winger Omran Haydary and midfielder Faustas Steponavičius were forced off in the recent win over Džiugas, while Sidy Sanokho is reported to be building momentum after an interrupted start to the season. Defender Ernestas Stočkūnas could make his 200th Toplyga appearance.
Panevėžys were beaten in Šiauliai after a second-half collapse and have had an uneven opening nine matches, conceding 15 goals – the second-worst tally in the league – despite strong displays from veteran goalkeeper Vytautas Černiauskas. Their defensive options have been hit further by an injury to Justinas Januševskis, who had played every minute of the first eight league games. Panevėžys have lost only three of the last 15 meetings between the sides.
On Sunday, Banga host Hegelmann in Gargždai (14:15), with the visitors seeking a response after losing the reverse fixture 2-0. Banga have taken five points from their last three league matches and progressed in the Lithuanian Cup, while Hegelmann boosted confidence in midweek with a 4-1 cup win away to Tauras but remain among the lowest scorers in the division.
Džiugas face Vilnius Žalgiris later on Sunday (16:00) at Klaipėda’s artificial pitch, with Džiugas again playing their home fixture away from Telšiai. Andrius Lipskis rotated in midweek as Džiugas beat Neptūnas 2-0 in the cup, and they start the round on 17 points, within touching distance of the leaders. Žalgiris’ winless league run has reached five matches and they were also sensationally knocked out of the Lithuanian cup by Atmosfera, with new head coach Andrius Skerla tasked with turning results around.
The weekend’s schedule finishes in Šiauliai (16:30), where FA Šiauliai host TransINVEST. Šiauliai claimed their first league win of the season at the ninth attempt and will again be led by interim head coach Mantas Kuklys, while TransINVEST arrive after a standout win over Kauno Žalgiris but with a number of players sidelined, including defender Edvinas Girdvainis.
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Source: https://fksuduva.lt/turo-anonsas-suduva-priima-panevezi-2/
