Gvidas Gineitis

Gvidas Gineitis (born 15 April 2004) is a Lithuanian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Torino and the Lithuania national team.

Gvidas Gineitis
Gineitis in 2023
Personal information
Date of birth (2004-04-15) 15 April 2004
Place of birth Mažeikiai, Lithuania
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Torino
Number 66
Youth career
2016–2018 NFA Kaunas
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2019 NFA Kaunas 10 (0)
2019–2020 Atmosfera 28 (4)
2020–2022 SPAL 0 (0)
2022– Torino 3 (0)
International career‡
2021–2022 Lithuania U17 3 (0)
2021–2022 Lithuania U19 8 (1)
2022– Lithuania U21 3 (0)
2022– Lithuania 4 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 9 April 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 27 March 2023 (UTC)

In January 2023, he received the Best Young Lithuanian Footballer of the Year award by the Lithuanian Football Federation.[1][2]

Club career

Born in Mažeikiai,[3][4][5] Gineitis is a youth product of NFA Kaunas,[4] where he made his senior debut on 22 September 2018, coming on as a substitute in the second half of a 2–1 I Lyga defeat to Žalgiris B.[6]

In 2019, he then joined fellow second-tier side Atmosfera,[4] where he scored his first senior goal on 24 April 2019, in a 9–8 LFF Cup loss on penalties against Kėdainiai (the match had ended in a 3–3 draw after 120 minutes).[7]

In the summer of 2020, Gineitis joined Serie B side SPAL,[3][8] where he played for the under-17, under-18 and under-19 teams of the Italian club.[3][4]

On 31 January 2022, the deadline day for the winter transfer window, Gineitis joined Serie A side Torino on a permanent transfer,[9] as part of a deal that also involved Demba Seck and Francesco Dell'Aquila.[3][5] He subsequently signed a professional contract with the club on 8 June 2022, penning a three-year deal.[10]

Following his performances for Torino's under-19 squad, the midfielder was promoted to the first team during the winter break of the 2022–23 season, under head coach Ivan Jurić.[3][4][5][11] He went on to make his Serie A debut on 10 February 2023, starting and playing 45 minutes in a 1–0 loss to AC Milan.[11][12][13] In the occasion, he became the fourth Lithuanian player to ever feature in the Italian top tier, following the likes of Tomas Danilevičius, Marius Stankevičius and Edgaras Dubickas.[11]

In March 2023, Gineitis extended his contract with Torino until 2026.[14]

International career

Gineitis has represented Lithuania at various youth international levels, having played for the under-17, under-19 and under-21 national teams.[4]

In November 2022, he received his first call-up to the Lithuanian senior national team for the 2022 Baltic Cup.[15][16] He then made his senior debut for Lithuania on 16 November 2022, coming in as a substitute in the tournament's semi-final match against Iceland, which ended up in a 5–6 loss on penalties.[17] Three days later, he made his first start in the third place final against Estonia, which ended in a 2–0 loss.[4]

Style of play

Gineitis is a left-footed midfielder,[5][11] who mainly acts as a mezzala on attacking duties,[4] but can also play in every position of the midfield, or even in the number 10 role.[4] He has been mainly regarded for his physique, his athleticism and his off-the-ball movement.[3][4][5]

Due to his characteristics, he has been compared to Tommaso Pobega.[3]

References
  1. "Geriausiu Lietuvos metų futbolininku tapo Gertmonas, tarp trenerių triumfavo Čeburinas". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 31 January 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  2. "Kaune apdovanoti 2022-ųjų Lietuvos futbolo geriausieji". Eurofootball.lt (in Lithuanian). 1 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  3. Guaschini, Alessandro (31 December 2022). "Chi è Gvidas Gineitis, il 2004 che ha impressionato Juric". Numero Diez (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  4. Gualano, Leonardo (10 February 2023). "Chi è Gvidas Gineitis, il gioiello del Torino che fa il suo esordio in Serie A contro il Milan". Goal.com. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  5. Golia, Simone (10 February 2023). "Fisico, tecnica, visione e posizione: chi è Gineitis, il 18enne che ha stregato Juric". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  6. "FK Žalgiris B - BE1 NFA". Lietuvos Futbolas (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  7. "Kėdainiai - FK Atmosfera". Lietuvos Futbolas (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  8. Rossi, Marco (3 March 2022). "Torino, Gineitis è di un'altra categoria". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  9. "Gineitis al Toro". Torino FC 1906 (in Italian). 1 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  10. "Perspektyvus lietuvis susiejo ateitį su "Serie A" klubu". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 8 June 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  11. "G.Gineitis šįvakar debiutuos Italijos "Serie A" lygoje". sportas.lt (in Lithuanian). 10 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  12. Gambino, Simone (10 February 2023). "Milan-Torino 1-0: Giroud risveglia il Diavolo, i rossoneri tornano a vincere dopo 7 partite". Goal.com. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  13. Zarra, Angelo (10 February 2023). "Torino, Juric lancia Gineitis: esordio in Serie A per il lituano". MondoPrimavera (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  14. "Gineitis, rinnovo sino al 2026". Torino FC 1906 (in Italian). 2 March 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  15. "Lietuvos rinktinės treneris išrikiavo sudėtį Baltijos taurės turnyrui". 15min.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  16. Ferrero, Carlo Federico (10 November 2022). "Internazionale Toro: dalla Lituania all'Austria, dalla Romania a un vero 'figlio del Filadelfia'". www.sprintesport.it (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  17. "Gvidas Gineitis debiutavo šalies rinktinėje". santarve.lt (in Lithuanian). 22 November 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
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