Before the match, from 5 p.m., an entertainment zone will be open in the football complex’s indoor arena, and just before the start of the duel, the best players of the league for August will be awarded.
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„Sūduva“ had only a few days to prepare for the match, as on Wednesday they still played an away game against „Kauno Žalgiris“. For the Marijampolė team, this will be the third match in 8 days. Meanwhile, the Vilnius team had exactly a week to prepare for the trip to Marijampolė.
„We did everything to revive the players. We are not used to playing so seriously, last Sunday we played on artificial turf, and on Wednesday it was noticeable that there was a bit less movement,“ said „Sūduva“ head coach Donatas Vencevičius. „Still, I think the team managed to regain strength.“
Two „Sūduva“ players agreed with their coach – Steve Lawson, who has recently been acting as captain on the field, and Ernestas Stočkūnas.
„The club invests a lot in our recovery, so we are fully ready to play. I can’t say we are as fresh as the opponents, because they played a week ago, but everything is fine,“ said the Frenchman.
„We have good staff, we recover strength quickly,“ agreed the Lithuanian. „Of course, you can feel that we play every few days, there is some fatigue, but we will definitely be ready for the fight.“
Another aspect of preparation for the duel with „Žalgiris“ is psychological. The Marijampolė team had not experienced a defeat in Toplyga since early May, but in Kaunas they lost to the opponents 1:5.
„Matches follow matches, if you sit down and think that you lost, nothing good will come of it,“ said D. Vencevičius. „The guys understand that. Series start and end. We lost to a good opponent, sometimes lacked strength, but I hope that both physically and morally we will be ready for the duel with the Vilnius team.“
„For me, as a player, thoughts about losses only spin on the same day. The next day you might still think a bit, but then you forget. Now everything is forgotten. Matches go one after another, and at the end of the season we will see where we are,“ said E. Stočkūnas.
Meanwhile, S. Lawson uses the experienced defeat as motivation.
„I have it in mind,“ said the midfielder. „It is needed to maintain anger, a greater desire to prove that we can play much better. It was painful after the match because I don’t think we were that much worse than them, as the result shows. So you need to keep that in the corner of your mind.“
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The Marijampolė team will meet the capital’s team for the third time. On March 10, in Vilnius’ „Sportima“ indoor arena, they lost to the opponents 0:1, and on May 10, the duel in the capital of the Sūduva region ended in a 1:1 draw.
This year, „Sūduva“ has to face ever-renewed opponents each time. In the first match, „Žalgiris“ was still led by Rolandas Džiaukštas, the team came to Marijampolė with Andrius Skerla as head coach, and now they will have many new players who did not participate in the first duels.
„We prepared, analyzed, the opponents are changing their lineup for the third time. We will see after the match if we managed to use our and their strengths and weaknesses,“ said D. Vencevičius briefly.
„We are approaching the match with fighting moods, we will go to the field only for 3 points. „Žalgiris“ is a good team, they play a lot with the ball, it will be interesting to check ourselves,“ said E. Stočkūnas. „This season, both they and we have big goals.“
„As soon as I arrived, the former club director and coach Dovydas Lastauskas said that „Žalgiris“ is like an enemy. This match is like a derby that must be won, not just an ordinary game,“ expressed his view on the duel S. Lawson.
Matches between „Sūduva“ and „Žalgiris“ historically arouse special interest among fans in Marijampolė. The first mutual match of this season in the „Mantinga“ arena was watched by 3,042 spectators. This is the largest number of spectators to have gathered at the stadium this year, and today the record may be broken.
„A strong opponent awaits, and we expect many spectators,“ smiled D. Vencevičius. „It will be a good and interesting match.“
„As a player, I am very pleased when so many people gather. There is really great interest, so my request is to come as many as possible and support as loudly as possible. Together we will strive for 3 points,“ said E. Stočkūnas.
„Everyone must come to this match. We need fans. This year we won many matches in the last moments precisely because of the support, the fans we have both at home and away. Come, and we will give everything on the field so that you can be proud of us,“ said S. Lawson.
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