2023 Virsliga Preview

Although it's been a rough decade for Latvian football, 2022 was a great year for football in the country which had many upsets from RFS qualifying to the Europa Conference League group stages (the 1st Latvian team since Ventspils in 2009 to qualify for a UEFA group stage competition) and Valmiera FC winning their first ever Virsliga title. 2023 will be huge year in Latvian football and with more talented players then ever in the league, you won’t want to miss this season’s Virsliga! 

All stats in parentheses next to the players names are from last season’s Virsliga.

Raimonds Krollis lifts the Virsliga trophy for Valmiera
Image source: Optibet Virsliga

Valmiera FC

Last year, the small town in Vidzeme with a population of just 22,000 people did the unthinkable. The big question is, will they be able to challenge for the title again this season.

Quite a few key players left Valmiera such as the Virsliga's top scorer Raimonds Krollis (25 goals in 34 games) who moved to Serie A side Spezia Calcio. Keeper Rihards Matrevics moved to Riga FC and Japanese midfielder Daisuke Yokota who was vital in Valmiera's success moved to Gornik Zabrze in Poland. Valmiera have however gotten a few talented local players such as Renārs Varslavāns, a forward from RFS and 18-year-old center back Niks Sliede who was solid at the back last season at Tukums. Valmiera also replaced Matrevics with Venezuelan keeper Carlos Olses & signed Brazilian midfielder Gustavo Silva Souza. 

Despite many Latvian pundits predicting a downfall, the Vidzeme side still have a quality squad which on paper should be good enough to finish in the top 3. The core defenders from last season in Daniels Balodis, Emils Birka & Pape Fall only conceded 25 goals in 36 matches will play a key role this season. The midfield pairing of Alvis Jaunzems and Ivan Zhelizko are also key players as they have that winning mentality and will do everything they can to keep the Virsliga trophy in Valmiera.

The Valmiera players & fans celebrating after beating Liepāja 2-0 to win their 1st ever Virsliga title!
Image source: Valmiera FC Facebook page

Riga FC

The Rīdzenieki have by far the highest budget in the league, however they have gone two seasons without winning the Virsliga and are fired up to win the league. Riga FC appointed Tomislav Stipic as the manager who was coaching Auda last season and was a huge success in winning the Latvijas Kauss (Cup) a year after they got promoted. 

Riga FC have been very busy in the transfer window as they signed a whopping 13 players. You could say that it is an entire new team, as Stipic will have a tough time selecting his best starting 11 as well as integrating all the new players into the current squad whom many have only been at the club for half a year. Serbian midfielder Miloš Jojic is the standout signing, as he played for Borussia Dortmund under Jurgen Klopp for two seasons in 2014 and 2015 as well as playing for Koln in the three following seasons. The Rīdzenieki also signed forward Marko Dabro from Beijing Guoan (Chinese Super League). Douglas Aurelio was vital upfront last season as he scored 5 goals in 17 games and is a key player this season. Another player to watch is Finnish international Mikael Soisalo (4 goals, 7 assists in 27 games) as he controls the middle of the park. 

It’s clear Riga are aiming high as anything lower than winning the league would be seen as a disappointing season, especially considering Riga have one of the best squads in the Virsliga on paper. The big question is, will Stipic get the team chemistry and starting 11 right. Only time will tell.

Riga FC's starting 11 photo before a friendly match against Levadia Tallinn
Image source: Riga FC Facebook page

RFS 

Last season was remarkable for RFS as they qualified to the Europa Conference League and were even able to tie Serie A side Fiorentina in Italy 1-1. The amount of matches was too much for RFS as in the Virsliga they finished in 3rd place and qualifying for the group stages this season will be much more difficult. 

The Rīdzenieki have surprisingly been able to keep their key players in the squad in Brazilian winger Emerson Santana and forward Andrej Ilič who had a combined 27 goals in the Virsliga. RFS signed forward Jānis Ikaunieks who was on fire for Finnish side KuPS as he scored 8 goals, and had 4 assists in last season’s Veikkausliiga. At the back, Mārcis Ošs joins the Rīdzenieki as he will bring his wealth of experience from the Swiss Super League to the Virsliga. 

This season RFS will be looking to challenge Valmiera and Riga FC for the title and will give them a run for their money. The Rīdzenieki have most of their core players from the last two season’s in the squad which they have that advantage over Riga FC, plus a few new signings who could help RFS win the league.

RFS players celebrate after scoring against FK Liepāja
Image source: RFS Facebook Page

Liepāja FC

The Kurzeme side finished in 4th place last season and missed out on a spot in the Conference League Qualifiers. This will be a rebuilding season as Liepāja signed a whopping 20 players. 

Georgian midfielder Giorgi Kutsia could be one of the new signings to watch as he was electric in the Erovnuli Liga for Dinamo Tbilisi. Liepāja also signed Cameroonian midfielder Joseph Minala who had 12 appearances for Serie C side Olbia Calcio this season. Unlike many teams in the Virsliga who have young squads, Liepāja have an older squad with many players in their late 20s, early 30s. Brazilian forward Dodo will be another player to watch as he has scored 43 goals in 104 Virsliga matches. 

The Kurzeme side will aim for the top 3, as they want to be playing in the Conference League qualifiers. With a lot of new signings and many players from last season gone, Liepāja will need a strong start in the league as Riga FC, Valmiera, RFS, and Auda will be tough opponents.

Liepāja team talk before their match against Daugavpils
Image source: FK Liepāja Facebook Page

FK Auda 

Auda really punched above their weight last season as they won the Latvijas Kauss and finished in 5th place in the Virsliga, which is remarkable considering they were in the 1.Liga in 2021. 

Cameroonian international Fabrice Ondoa was one of the best keepers in the league last season, as he had 12 clean sheets in 30 appearances. Auda's success was due to it's no nonsense defenders in Božo Mikulic and Ivo Minkevičs who helped Auda finish in the top half of the table. Auda stregthened the middle by signing 20-year-old Matias Piteo who previously played for Almirante Brown (Argentinian 2nd tier) and also signed Aleksejs Saveljevs permanently, who last season was playing for Auda on loan from Riga FC. 

It will be an interesting season for the Ķekava side considering that they will be playing in Europe for the first time ever. Auda will be aiming high and will try their luck in reaching the top 4. 

Auda celebrate after scoring against Tukums
Image source: FK Auda Facebook Page

FK Tukums 2000

In the beginning of last season, it seemed that Tukums were going to get relegated especially after losing eight out of their ten first matches of the season including a 10-0 loss to RFS. However they turned it around in the 2nd half of the season and finished in 6th place and pulled above their weight. 

Unfortunately Tukums lost most of their key players in the transfer window to their stronger Virsliga rivals such as Niks Sliede to Valmiera as well as defenders Markuss Kruglaužs & Jānis Krautmanis to Liepāja. There are some signings Tukums fans can be excited about as they sign French center back Maroine Mihoubi who has played for Stade Tunisien (Tunisia top division) & Lviv in the Ukrainian Premier League. 21-year-old keeper Vladislavs Kapustins also signed for Tukums from Serie D side from Paterno Calcio. 

Tukums will aim to establish themselves in the league as two seasons ago they were in the 1.Liga. As Tukums finished in 6th place last season, anything above that this season will be seen as a successful season.

Tukums players celebrate after scoring against Valmiera
Image source: Tukums 2000 Facebook page 

BFC Daugavpils

The Latgale side finished in 7th place last season and are most likely going to finish either just above relegation or in the top six. Daugavpils lost quite a few of their key players such as midfielders Kirils Iļjins (Riga FC) , Dele Israel (Sigma Olomouc, Czech Republic 1st tier) and Lasha Kvaratskhelia (Shukura, Georgian 1st tier). The biggest loss is definitely Valerijs Lizunovs to RFS as the 19-year-old scored 10 goals in 30 appearances. 

The only signing Daugavpils made was signing 18-year-old center back Moses Salifu Bawa Zuure who has experience with the Ghanaian U20 side. Daugavpils have a mixture of young and older experienced players as 40-year-old midfielder Valerijs Afanasjevs will lead the team in what could be the last season in his career. 

With the amount of players Daugavpils lost as well as financial issues with the club, it could be a tough season and potentially be fighting to avoid relegation. It's up to the few senior players in Afanasjevs and keeper Vladislavs Kurakins to lead the team to victory.

Daugavpils players with their fans after their match against Auda
Image source: BFC Daugavpils Facebook Page

FK Metta/LU

Metta are known in the league for having one of the youngest squads with an average age of 20.3 years old. The players to watch on Metta is the forward duo of Bruno Melnis and Artjoms Puzirevskis who scored a combined 21 goals last season. 18-year-old midfielder Lukass Vapne is back in Metta after being on loan to Valmiera (3 goals, 1 assist in 10 games) and will be key in controlling the middle. Metta strengthened their squad by signing RFS midfielder Vladislavs Fjodorovs who will bring experience to this young side. 

As Metta have always been fighting to avoid relegation since 2012 (1st ever season in the Virsliga), the young side will be aiming for a top six finish. If they can keep most of their talented players for the whole season, Metta will be an entertaining team to watch and could cause a few surprises.

Metta players clap to their fans after a 1-1 draw against Super Nova
Image source: FS Metta Facebook Page

SK Super Nova

Despite finishing in last place in the 2022 Virsliga season, Super Nova will still compete in the league due to Spartaks not obtaining a licence to participate this season. The Salaspils based side lost two of the clubs key players in keeper Kristaps Zommers and forward Marko Regža (8 goals in 24 games) to Riga FC. Super Nova strengthened the midfield as they signed Kristers Lūsiņš and Kristiāns Kaušelis on loan from Valmiera as well as Oļegs Laizāns who will bring experience to this young side. 

Super Nova will aim to stay up this time around and now have Virsliga experience to perhaps aim higher and challenge Tukums & Daugavpils for 6th place although that might be a stretch. The results against Metta and Jelgava will determine whether Super Nova will stay in the league or not.

Super Nova players celebrate after a shock 3-2 away win to RFS
Image source: SK Super Nova Facebook Page

FS Jelgava

Although the club changed their name from FK to FS Jelgava, they are finally back in the Virsliga after playing in the 1.Liga (2nd tier) for the last two seasons. Jelgava have the youngest squad in the Virsliga with an average age of 20.2 years old. The Zemgale side have signed a few players with Virsliga experience in Oskars Rubenis (Tukums), Yegor Smirnov (Super Nova) and defender Daniels Grauds (Spartaks). Jelgava also signed Nigerian forward Victor Osuagwu from Slavia Prague’s 2nd team. 

Jelgava will be aiming to avoid relegation this season and will most likely be battling with Super Nova & Metta to stay in the league. Unlike other Virsliga sides, most of Jelgava's players from last season are still at the club as team chemistry could be key in helping the Zemgale side avoid relegation.

The Zemgale side celebrate promotion to the Virsliga
Image source: FS Jelgava Facebook page