Will FK Žalgiris Vilnius continue their Champions League campaign and pursue their European dreams?

The time has come. After defeating their opponents with a solid 2-0 result in the first leg at home, the Lithuanian champions will now face the same Hamrun Spartans, this time in Malta. The southern European heat will certainly not work in FK Žalgiris Vilnius‘ favor, but the advantage they secured in Lithuania’s capital is more than encouraging. Will it be enough? Let’s take a closer look.

The first leg was far from impressive for Vladimir Cheburin’s side, and at times, it didn’t seem like their opponents were the weaker team. The first half in Vilnius was evenly contested, with both teams creating chances. Hamrun Spartans, in particular, could genuinely blame themselves, as they had more than one clear opportunity to open the scoring.

However, a combination of poor finishing, the fact that it was their first official match of the season, and some solid performances from Žalgiris’ goalkeeper and defenders ultimately left the Maltese side with nothing to show. The 2-0 result painted a pretty harsh picture for Hamrun, given how the match played out.

In contrast, FK Žalgiris capitalized when it mattered. Both goals came as a direct result of tactical decisions by coach Cheburin. The first was a brilliantly executed free-kick in the 59th minute, finished by the ageless veteran Liviu Antal. The second came in the 85th minute, courtesy of Kassim Hadji, a substitute who scored with one of his first touches, less than a minute after coming onto the pitch.

After the match Vladimir Cheburin said:

“There can be a lot of debate about whether the result is fair. A team can defend the entire match, but counterattack twice and win. Defending is a skill too. We had a few more chances, but of course, I won’t deny that our opponents had their own opportunities as well. And the result? It’s on the scoreboard!”

Reflecting on this evening’s match, the manager from Kazakhstan shared his thoughts.

“It won’t be easy, because in the Champions League we only play against the champions of other countries. We’re well aware of the climate conditions that await us. Still, after this match, I can say that we’ve already felt on our own skin what kind of opponent we’re up against. We’ll analyze and prepare. Even before this match, our scouting worked quite well. We didn’t have much information, but we had some. We were only wrong about two starting lineup players. That doesn’t mean we’re clairvoyants, but we had watched one of their games, even though they tried very hard to hide everything. Now, we know much more about each other.”

Yesterday, the club safely arrived in Malta and scheduled their first training session ahead of tonight’s clash.

The second leg of the first Champions League qualifying round between FK Žalgiris Vilnius and Hamrun Spartans kicks off at 20:00 Lithuanian time.

If Žalgiris advances to the next round, they will face Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kyiv.

However, if they are eliminated, they will move into the second qualifying round of the Conference League, where they will face the winner of the tie between Linfield FC (Northern Ireland) and Shelbourne FC (Ireland).