Gvidas Gineitis

Gvidas Gineitis
Gineitis with Torino in 2023
Personal information
Date of birth (2004-04-15) 15 April 2004 (age 20)
Place of birth Mažeikiai, Lithuania
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[1]
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 28 (0)
International career‡
2021–2022 Lithuania U17 3 (0)
2021–2022 Lithuania U19 8 (1)
2022– Lithuania U21 3 (0)
2022– Lithuania 18 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16 December 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024 (UTC)

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.

In January 2023, he received the Best Young Lithuanian Footballer of the Year award by the Lithuanian Football Federation.[2][3]

Club career

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Born in Mažeikiai,[4][5][6] Gineitis is a youth product of NFA Kaunas,[5] 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.[7]

In 2019, he then joined fellow second-tier side Atmosfera,[5] 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).[8]

In the summer of 2020, Gineitis joined Serie B side SPAL,[4][9] where he played for the under-17, under-18 and under-19 teams of the Italian club.[4][5]

On 31 January 2022, the deadline day for the winter transfer window, Gineitis joined Serie A side Torino on a permanent transfer,[10] as part of a deal that also involved Demba Seck and Francesco Dell'Aquila.[4][6] He subsequently signed a professional contract with the club on 8 June 2022, penning a three-year deal.[11]

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.[4][5][6][12] 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.[12][13][14] 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.[12]

In March 2023, Gineitis extended his contract with Torino until 2026.[15]

International career

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Gineitis has represented Lithuania at various youth international levels, having played for the under-17, under-19 and under-21 national teams.[5]

In November 2022, he received his first call-up to the Lithuanian senior national team for the 2022 Baltic Cup.[16][17] 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.[18] Three days later, he made his first start in the third place final against Estonia, which ended in a 2–0 loss.[5]

On 15 November 2024, during a 2024–25 UEFA Nations League C game against Cyprus, he scored his first goal for Lithuania, becoming at 20 years and 7 months its youngest goalscorer in UEFA Nations League.[19]

Style of play

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Gineitis is a left-footed midfielder,[6][12] who mainly acts as a mezzala on attacking duties,[5] but can also play in every position of the midfield, or even in the number 10 role.[5] He has been mainly regarded for his physique, his athleticism and his off-the-ball movement.[4][5][6]

Due to his characteristics, he has been compared to Tommaso Pobega.[4]

References

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  1. ^ https://www.torinofc.it/prima-squadra/2023-2024/centrocampista/gineitis-gvidas
  2. ^ "Geriausiu Lietuvos metų futbolininku tapo Gertmonas, tarp trenerių triumfavo Čeburinas". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 31 January 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  3. ^ "Kaune apdovanoti 2022-ųjų Lietuvos futbolo geriausieji". Eurofootball.lt (in Lithuanian). 1 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Guaschini, Alessandro (31 December 2022). "Chi è Gvidas Gineitis, il 2004 che ha impressionato Juric". Numero Diez (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j 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.
  6. ^ a b c d e 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.
  7. ^ "FK Žalgiris B - BE1 NFA". Lietuvos Futbolas (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  8. ^ "Kėdainiai - FK Atmosfera". Lietuvos Futbolas (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  9. ^ Rossi, Marco (3 March 2022). "Torino, Gineitis è di un'altra categoria". Corriere della Sera (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  10. ^ "Gineitis al Toro". Torino FC 1906 (in Italian). 1 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  11. ^ "Perspektyvus lietuvis susiejo ateitį su "Serie A" klubu". lrt.lt (in Lithuanian). 8 June 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  12. ^ a b c d "G.Gineitis šįvakar debiutuos Italijos "Serie A" lygoje". sportas.lt (in Lithuanian). 10 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  13. ^ 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.
  14. ^ Zarra, Angelo (10 February 2023). "Torino, Juric lancia Gineitis: esordio in Serie A per il lituano". MondoPrimavera (in Italian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  15. ^ "Gineitis, rinnovo sino al 2026". Torino FC 1906 (in Italian). 2 March 2023. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  16. ^ "Lietuvos rinktinės treneris išrikiavo sudėtį Baltijos taurės turnyrui". 15min.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  17. ^ 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.
  18. ^ "Gvidas Gineitis debiutavo šalies rinktinėje". santarve.lt (in Lithuanian). 22 November 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  19. ^ "Cyprus-Lithuania". UEFA. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
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