Northern Ireland v Lithuania (12/11/2021)

FROM PITCH TO BOARDROOM Tomas Danilevicius, Lithuania’s leading all-time goalscorer, has been the president of the Lithuanian Football Federation since 2017, and he has had quite a journey from the pitch to the boardroom.

WORDS: ANDY GREEVES

Following the signing of the Act of the Re- Establishment of the State of Lithuania in 1990, which established the country’s independence from the Soviet Union, Lithuania started to compete in international football once again having previously done so between 1923 and 1940. Having re-joined FIFA and gained UEFA affiliation in 1992, Lithuania were quick to re-establish themselves as a respectable presence in the world game. The Rinktine finished third in their qualifying groups for UEFA Euro 1996 and the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Around the same time Klaipeda-born striker Danilevicius was impressing in the early stages of his professional career, turning out for Belgian outfit Club Brugge prior to a transfer to Dynamo Moscow in 1998. Danilevicius made his debut for Lithuania in a 4-2 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on 14 October 1998, just a day after featuring for his country’s U21s against the Bosnians. His first international goal came in his eighth appearance for the Rinktine as he netted in a 2-1 win over Cyprus in the Cyprus International Tournament in February 2001. Less than a year earlier Danilevicius had secured himself a move from Lausanne to Arsenal , however things didn’t really work out for him in north London, with the Gunners allowing him to go on loan to Scottish side Dunfermline Athletic during the 2000-01 season. He was sold to Belgian side Beveren in July 2001 after just three competitive appearances for the Gunners and went on to become something of a journeyman at club level with moves to the likes of Livorno, Bologna, Juve Stabia, Latina and Parma. But at international level Danilevicius became an increasingly important figure in the Lithuanian national team. His five international goals in

2006 included the opener in a famous 1-1 draw for the Rinktine against Italy in a UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier in Naples in September of that year. He also scored five international goals in 2007, including a strike in a 2-0 victory over Ukraine in Kaunas. Danilevicius spearheaded Lithuania’s strong push as they attempted to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He netted four times in Group 7 with a brace in a 2-0 home win over Austria and a 1-0 win over the Faroe Islands. The Rinktine rose to their highest FIFA World Ranking of 37 around this time (October 2008) as they beat Romania and Serbia in the same group. Alas a defeat to European minnows Faroe Islands proved particular costly as Lithuania eventually finished fourth in their group behind Serbia, France and Austria. The 2-1 loss to the Faroes in September 2009 saw Danilevicius score his 19th international goal , which continues to make him his country’s top scorer to date. The last of his 71 international appearances came against Liechtenstein in October 2012 and he retired from playing all together less than two years later. Danilevicius started a property business following his retirement before he was elected as president of the Lithuanian Football Federation in September 2017. He was re-elected for a four-year term in August 2020. Speaking to UEFA.com at the time, he said: “I want to continue the work which has been started. We have a lot of objectives, such as the improvement of indoor infrastructures and nurturing women’s football . My goal for this term is to have specific results, and we have a strateg y for that .”

IRISHFA.COM

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