FK Atlantas

The Europa League draw is upon us once more and tomorrow afternoon (June 23rd) we will find out what club we will be adding to the list of teams who have knocked us out in recent years - Vllaznia Shkoder, Vorskla Poltava, Spartak Trnava and FK Molde...or maybe, just maybe this will be the year to get through a round? Sligo Rovers are seeded for the draw and therefore that will help improve our chances as we get to avoid tougher opponents such as Aberdeen (Hi Sheerin!), Rosenborg and our old friends Spartak Trnava. The first round draw is also regionalised which means our opposition is most likely to come from the northern Europe region - including teams from Iceland, Faroe Islands, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Wales and possibly one or two others. It's likely to be a tough task for the new duo of Coleman and Bell whatever the outcome of tomorrow's draw. Here's a very brief look at one potential opponent...

 

FK Atlantas

 

Fulbolo Klubas Atlantas (Lithuanian for Atlantic) are based in the Lithuanian city of Klaipėda. They were founded in 1966 and qualified for the 14/15 Europa League by finishing runners up to Zalgiris Vilnius in the 2013 A Lyga, finishing just two points behind the champions. Similarly to the League of Ireland, the Lithuanians play a summer season and Atlantas are currently in the mid-table position of fifth out of ten teams, 12 points off first place after 19 games.

 

They play their home games at Žalgiris Stadium [pictured right] in Klaipėda which has a capacity of just under 5,000. Atlantas have won their national league four times, the last time coming in 1984 when Lithuania was part of the old Soviet Union and the club was known as its original name Granitas Klaipėda. Their most recent success was winning the national cup in 2003, a cup they have won six times.

 

Euro Record 

Atlantas have never played in the revamped Europa League but they do have some history in European competitions having played in the Uefa Cup four times and the Intertoto Cup once but they have never managed to get past any of the opposition they faced with heavy aggregate defeats coming against Rapid Bucharest, Litex Lovech and Dyskobolia Grodzisk. Their most impressive European performance was in the 2004 Intertoto Cup where they lost 2-0 away to Spartak Moscow but defeated them 1-0 at home, going out 2-1 on aggregate. Their most recent European appearance was in the 05/06 Uefa Cup where they went out on the away goal rule to Welsh side Rhyl. They have never faced Irish opponents. Lithuanians aren't strangers to Ireland however with both Ekranas and Zalgiris Vilnius successfully defeating both Shamrock Rovers and St. Patrick's Athletic respectively in recent years. Sligo Rovers have also visited Lithuania once before, losing 1-0 to FBK Kaunas in the 1996 Intertoto Cup.

 

Squad and Management

 

The Atlantas squad is mostly made up of Lithuanians with just two players from outside the country - former Russian U21 midfielder Yuri Kirillov and 18 year old forward Maksim Maksimov, also from Russia. Their danger man up front and top scorer last season is Evaldas Razulis, he has 6 goals from 12 appearances so far this season. Razulis also has three international caps for Lithuania, scoring one goal in a friendly against Albania last year. Their most experienced internationals are Marius Papšys and Andrius Jokšas with 15 and 17 international caps respectively. Atlantas are managed by 46 year old Russian Konstantin Sarsania [pictured].

 

The City

 

Klaipeda is Lithuania's third largest city and is located in the north west of the country alongside the Baltic Sea. The city was Adolf Hitler's last acquisition before the beginning of World War II. It is an important port city for Lithuania and is also a popular stop for many cruise ships with a growing tourist trade. Klaipeda is the gateway to the Curonian Spit [pictured left], which is a stretch of sand dunes (98 kilometres in length) that is a UNESCO World heritage site which runs down to the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

 

The city is known for its old sailing ship 'Meridianas' [pictured right] and also its half timbered architecture in the old town. It is also known for its many sculptures which are located throughout the old town. The city has a few museums including a sea museum and a clock museum. There are also a few popular beaches including Smiltyne, Giruliai, Melnrage and Palanga. The city is home to one of the biggest shopping centres in the Baltics - Akropolis, which also has an ice skating rink. Klaipeda has many bars (usually open until anything from 12.30am-2am) and nightclubs (usually open until 5/6am), most clubs are closed Mon-Thurs however. Švyturys is the local brewery and they produce many different Švyturys beers which are found in all the pubs, for snacks Klaipeda is famous for its cheese fingers which you can get in the Senamiestis bar. For the less adventurous Klaipeda has one McDonald's next to the Akropolis mall.

 

Local Cost

Klaipeda is a very cheap city when compared to Irish standards. A main course meal ranges from €4 to €20 depending on the type of restaurant. The average price of a pint of beer in the city centre is likely to be between €2 to €3. For the more sophisticated, a cappuccino is about €1.20 and for Donal a 1.5 litre bottle of water will cost about 60 cent, the same price as a one way trip on the town bus.

 

Phrases 

Hello - Sveiki  (Svay-KEE)

Thanks - Dėkui (DEHH-kooy)

Yes - Taip (Tuyp)

No - Ne (Na)

Do you have wi-fi? - Ar turite wi-fi?

What part of the town are you from? - Kokia dalis miesto tu?

Do you know Westlife? That's his brother - Ar žinote Westlife? Tai jo brolis

Are you on Tinder? - Ar jums Pintis?

Egg...EGG...EGG - Kiaušiniai...KIAUSINIAI...KIAUSINIAI (kyow-SHIh-nay)