Scotland may be facing Liechtenstein for the first time in this campaign but the other lower-ranked team will hold no surprises. Lithuania have been paired with Scotland in the last three European Championship qualifying groups and it is fair to say they have made life difficult in the past.
In three trips to Lithuania our record is as mixed as can be. A win, a loss and a draw shows that while this side may be ranked 62nd in the world they do have the talent to pick up a decent result or two.
World Cup qualification showed the danger Lithuania pose for the rest of the group. The Eastern European side finished fourth in their group, behind Serbia, France and Austria but ahead of Romania. A 3-0 win in Cluj over the Romanians was the highlight of the campaign and Jose Couceiro will be hoping to improve on that this time around.
The squad could include Hearts defender Marius Zaluikas and Rangers striker Andrius Velicka when he recovers from injury. Other than the Scottish based pair the majority of the squad are from the Lithuanian league or other Eastern European clubs.
The two key men in the side are at clubs who play at a higher level but neither are regular starters for their sides. Marius Stankevicius is on loan at Sevilla from Sampdoria, where he will be hoping for regular football while Tomas Danilevicius is currently at Livorno but has only made 16 appearances in two years.
Danilevicius, a Dunfermline player for a brief spell ten years ago, is the main goal threat for his country. He netted four of his country’s ten goals in the World Cup qualifiers. Interestingly, particularly for those who remember Salius Mikoliunas receiving a two match ban for diving at Hampden to earn a penalty, three of Lithuania’s ten goals came from the spot.
Simply put, Lithuania are a team that Scotland will probably have to beat twice in order to qualify but it won’t be easy. This side is Jekyll and Hyde but then, Scotland can be too. If Scotland’s performances against Norway and Holland seemed like they came from two different sides then consider Lithuania’s recent matches.
Beaten 2-1 by Faroe Islands last September and going down to the same scoreline away in Austria a month later their campaign looked like petering out. Cue a final day rally and a 2-1 win over Serbia, already top of the group and four points clear of France going into the game.
