2020 A Lyga
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| Season | 2020 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 6 March – 7 November 2020 |
| Champions | Žalgiris |
| Champions League | Žalgiris |
| Europa Conference League | Sūduva Kauno Žalgiris Panevėžys |
| Matches played | 60 |
| Goals scored | 153 (2.55 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Hugo Vidémont (13 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Žalgiris 4–0 Panevėžys (6 March 2020) |
| Biggest away win | Riteriai 0–3 Kauno Žalgiris (8 March 2020) |
| Highest scoring | Žalgiris 4–0 Panevėžys (6 March 2020) |
| Longest winning run | 3 matches Sūduva |
| Longest unbeaten run | 3 matches Sūduva |
| Longest winless run | 4 matches Panevėžys |
| Longest losing run | 4 matches Panevėžys |
← 2019 2021 → All statistics correct as of 13 June 2020. | |
The 2020 A Lyga was the 31st season of the A Lyga, the top-tier football league of Lithuania. The season began on 6 March and was planned to end on 7 November 2020. On 12 March all sports events were postponed for two weeks in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic.[1]
Teams[edit]
FK Sūduva Marijampolė begin the season as defending champions having won their third consecutive league title last year.
Three clubs dropped out of A Lyga last season - Stumbras folded in the summer, while Atlantas and Palanga were disqualified after the end of the season after investigation revealed numerous match-fixing incidents.
Licensing process[edit]
The top 5 previous season's teams - FK Sūduva Marijampolė, FK Žalgiris, FK Riteriai, FK Kauno Žalgiris and FK Panevėžys met licensing criteria and received a straight pass to their licenses. Disqualified FK Palanga and FK Atlantas appealed the disqualification decision and expressed interest in playing in A Lyga. Their appeals were rejected.
Five of the I Lyga teams applied for A Lyga licenses - FK Banga Gargždai, FC Džiugas, Vilniaus Vytis, DFK Dainava and FC Hegelmann Litauen. The previous year's I Lyga winners FC Džiugas failed to meet A Lyga licensing criteria, and their application was rejected. FC Džiugas will continue playing in I Lyga this season. FK Banga Gargždai won the play-off match against FK Palanga and earned the right to play in A Lyga. Their A Lyga license was granted upon appeal. Vilniaus Vytis and DFK Dainava did not earn promotion to A Lyga, however they were hoping for exceptions which are common in Lithuanian football. In this instance their applications were rejected on the grounds of failing to meet several critical criteria. FC Hegelmann Litauen withdrew their application prior to the licensing committee's meeting. This meant that only six teams will play in the 2020 A Lyga championship. The LFF announced that four I Lyga teams will qualify for promotion to A Lyga next season.[2]
| Club | Location | Stadium | Surface | Capacity | Seasons in A Lyga | 2019 position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banga | Gargždai | Gargždai Stadium | Artificial | 2,323 | 7 | 2nd in LFF I lyga |
| — | — | — | ||||
| Kauno Žalgiris | Kaunas | SM Tauras Stadium | Natural | 500 | 6 | 4th |
| NFA Stadium | Artificial | 500 | ||||
| Panevėžys | Panevėžys | Aukštaitija Stadium | Natural | 6,600 | 2 | 5th |
| Žemyna Progymnasium Stadium | Artificial | 500 | ||||
| Riteriai | Vilnius | LFF Stadium | Artificial | 5,067 | 7 | 3rd |
| Sportima Arena | Artificial | 3,157 | ||||
| Sūduva | Marijampolė | Sūduva Stadium (Hikvision Arena) | Natural | 6,250 | 18 | 1st |
| Marijampolė Football Indoor Arena (Hikvision FIA) | Artificial | 2,660 | ||||
| Žalgiris | Vilnius | LFF Stadium | Artificial | 5,067 | 19 | 2nd |
| Sportima Arena | Artificial | 3,157 |
Personnel and kits[edit]
| Team | Head coach | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banga |  Tomas Tamošauskas[3] | Deividas Padaigis |  Nike | - |
| Kauno Žalgiris | Rokas Garastas | Linas Pilibaitis |  Hummel | BC Žalgiris |
| Panevėžys |  João Luís Martins | Paulius Janušauskas | Hummel[4] | Kalnapilis |
| Riteriai |  Tommi Pikkarainen | Valdemaras Borovskis | Nike | Ecoil |
| Sūduva | Saulius Širmelis | Algis Jankauskas |  Joma | Hikvision |
| Žalgiris |  Aleksey Baga | Saulius Mikoliūnas | Nike | Top Sport |
Managerial changes[edit]
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riteriai | Albert Rybak | end of caretaker spell | 3 January 2020 | Mindaugas Čepas | 7 January 2020 |
| Sūduva |  Vladimir Cheburin | contract expiry | at the end of the 2019 season |  Heimo Pfeifenberger | 8 January 2020 |
| Žalgiris | João Luís Martins | end of caretaker spell | 27 November 2019 | Aleksey Baga | 19 January 2020 |
| Kauno Žalgiris | Mindaugas Čepas | contract expiry [5] | 2 December 2019 | Rokas Garastas | 3 December 2019 |
| Sūduva | Heimo Pfeifenberger | contract termination[6] | 14 April 2020 | Saulius Širmelis | 23 May 2020 |
| Panevėžys |  Alexandru Curteian | contract termination[7] | 15 June 2020 | João Luís Martins | 4 July 2020 |
| Riteriai | Mindaugas Čepas | resigned[8] | 28 June 2020 | Vaidas Sabaliauskas (caretaker) | 28 June 2020 |
| Riteriai | Vaidas Sabaliauskas | end of caretaker spell[9] | 26 July 2020 |  Janusz Niedźwiedź | 26 July 2020 |
| Riteriai | Janusz Niedźwiedź | contract termination[10] | 1 August 2020 | Vaidas Sabaliauskas (caretaker) | 1 August 2020 |
| Riteriai | Vaidas Sabaliauskas | end of caretaker spell[11] | 11 August 2020 | Tommi Pikkarainen | 11 August 2020 |
Regular season[edit]
On 12 March all sports events were postponed for two weeks in the light of the coronavirus pandemic.[12]
League table[edit]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Žalgiris (C) | 20 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 42 | 14 | +28 | 45 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Sūduva | 20 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 32 | 18 | +14 | 43 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Kauno Žalgiris | 20 | 12 | 2 | 6 | 30 | 18 | +12 | 38 | |
| 4 | Banga | 20 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 30 | −14 | 16 | |
| 5 | Panevėžys | 20 | 2 | 6 | 12 | 19 | 38 | −19 | 12 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round[a] |
| 6 | Riteriai | 20 | 2 | 6 | 12 | 17 | 38 | −21 | 12 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored; 5) Head-to-head matches won; 6) Goal difference; 7) Goals scored; 8) Matches won.[13]
(C) Champions
Notes:
- ^ Panevėžys qualified for the Europa Conference League as the 2020 Lithuanian Football Cup winners.
Fixtures and results[edit]
Season statistics[edit]
Top scorers[edit]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Hugo Vidémont | Žalgiris | 13 |
| 2 |  Josip Tadić | Sūduva | 11 |
| 3 | Linas Pilibaitis | Kauno Žalgiris | 8 |
| 4 |  Liviu Antal | Žalgiris | 6 |
| 5 | Mihret Topčagić | Sūduva | 5 |
 Jorge Elias | Panevėžys | ||
| 6 |  Emmanuel David | Kauno Žalgiris | 4 |
 Yuriy Bushman | Kauno Žalgiris | ||
 Semir Kerla | Sūduva | ||
 Valērijs Šabala | Sūduva | ||
 Richie Ennin | Žalgiris | ||
 Andrija Kaluđerović | Žalgiris |
Updated to match(es) played on 1 September 2020.
Source: soccerway.com[14]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Svarbi informacija dėl LFF vykdomų varžybų ir renginių sustabdymo". LFF (in Lithuanian). 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
- ^ "Vykdomojo komiteto posėdžio metu patvirtintas I ir A lygų komandų skaičius". LFF. 2020-02-26. Retrieved 2020-02-26.
- ^ "Personalas – FK Banga".
- ^ Brazdžionis, Gintaras (5 August 2018). ""Hummel" prizas žiūrovams" (in Lithuanian). FK Panevėžys. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- ^ ""Kauno Žalgirio" komandoje – trenerių kaita". 3 December 2019.
- ^ "Nutraukta sutartis su H. Pfeifenbergeriu – FK Sūduva".
- ^ ""Panevėžys" atleido A.Kurtijaną".
- ^ "Mindaugas Čepas traukiasi iš "Riterių"".
- ^ ""Riteriams" vadovaus strategas iš Lenkijos".
- ^ "Išsiskyrė "Riterių" keliai su J. Niedzviedzu".
- ^ "Futbolo Klubas Riteriai » "Riterius" treniruos specialistas iš Suomijos".
- ^ "Svarbi informacija dėl LFF vykdomų varžybų ir renginių sustabdymo". LFF (in Lithuanian). 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
- ^ "A Lyga 2019 - Season rules" (DOCX) (in Lithuanian). Lithuanian Football Federation. 1 March 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
- ^ "Top Scorers".
External links[edit]
- Official website (in Lithuanian and English)