The Trakai Courier
Transfer targets17 Jan 2028
Fee done, terms next for Lirim Kastrati
Trakai and Kauno Zalgiris have settled on $1.1M. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
Market17 Jan 2028
Mattia La Penna hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Trakai can pretend not to have heard.
Market17 Jan 2028
Eyes on Saulius Novikovas again
The phone has started ringing about Saulius Novikovas again, and this time the name on the line is Stumbras. Trakai are listening politely and promising nothing.
Squad17 Jan 2028
Tempers go at Trakai
Chigozie Ani was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad17 Jan 2028
A row about effort at Trakai
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Lazar Sajčić was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout17 Jan 2028
Suleiman Badaru gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout17 Jan 2028
When it matters, Mantas Lasickas plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Market17 Jan 2028
Trakai put Andrius Simkus up for sale
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Andrius Simkus may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
Market17 Jan 2028
Edvinas Cernych leaves for nothing
Contract settled, hands shaken, no fee changing hands. Edvinas Cernych leaves Trakai the quiet way, and the wage bill breathes a little easier.
In brief
- Squad Diadé Camara starts on the language
- The dugout The manager plants his flag on Tomas Cernych
- Squad Welcome back, Deividas Slavickas