Kaunas Residents' Journey in Europe: A Walk with Lirim Kastrati

2026-10-15 15:15

Before the LFF Cup final and the trip to Brighton to play UEFA Conference League matches against the Brighton club, the creative team of FK "Kauno Žalgiris" invited Lirim Kastrati for a walk in the city of Kaunas.

The defender who joined the Lithuanian champions during the summer talked about his career, one of the most important stages of which was spent at the "Roma" club in Italy.

"It was a wonderful stage of my life. I was young and went far from home, leaving my family. Nevertheless, I left to improve and become better. In my last years there, I constantly trained with the main team of 'Roma'. Playing with those stars was sometimes even easier than with the second team, since everyone else made you better. I learned a lot," recalled the footballer who holds citizenship in Kosovo and Italy.

Another important moment in the Zalgiris player's career was triumphing in the Hungarian Cup final and scoring the winning goal.

"It was an amazing feeling, as I scored the winning goal. Being a defender, I don't score often, but when I do, I score important and beautiful ones," smiled the candidate for the Kosovo national team.

The latest achievements in L. Kastrati's career will be linked to Lithuania and FK "Kauno Žalgiris" - the won Lithuanian Football Cup and the upcoming debut in the UEFA Conference League. This latter goal was one of the motivations that encouraged the footballer to come to Lithuania.

"Since the club called me and explained the whole situation, it motivated me to come, and I said that it is possible to qualify for the European or Conference League," assured the legionnaire.

The first test in the UEFA Conference League - in England, against the club "Brighton", which even shocks the biggest football stars in the world.

"We have to acknowledge to ourselves that 'Brighton' is a huge club and has more experience than we do. But that doesn't mean we will tell them that they can easily win. We will fight, we will try with all our might, and then we will see. If they are better, we will applaud them and congratulate them, but we will strive to perform as best as we can. Of course, at this moment they are better than us and play in one of the best leagues in the world, if not the best. We'll see. We just have to do our job," the footballer shared in the interview.