Long For Luško
With regular starters
Genki Nagano and
Lim An Keng out injured, Grilled Birds head coach dipped into the transfer market for an emergency reinforcement, signing 36 year-old former Latvian international
Leongīns Luško for S$2.3 million. Luško had just helped Georgian club F.C. Pampulebi to the II.1 title last season, while bagging a hat-trick against AC BONI in the cup. A strained thigh against PLATONA just over a week back would have French gaffer Quentin Couval consider his options after three straight defeats with Luško in defence, and the S$3.6 million acquisition of Finnish goalkeeper Joni Taattola had F.C. Pampulebi looking to sell.
While
Dan Alstani understood the reservations over Luško's age and mobility, he felt that there were few better suited to plug the gaping hole in the Birds' squad, at the moment. "Leongīns may have his limitations, but he is still an absolutely top-drawer central defender on his day. His size alone solves a lot of problems with crosses and corners, and he has the experience to cover for the rest."
This would be supported by three caps each at senior and youth level, the former beginning as an early substitute for Jalmars Jērmals in a 1-0 friendly victory against Peru a week after Latvia's historic lifting of the World Cup, before being part of a famous 4-3 win over Germany in Round Two of the next edition, and a 2-0 versus Croatia in another later friendly. At U-20 level, he participated in a 3-1 win against Mongolia, a 2-1 against Bahrain and finally a 6-0 mauling of Indonesia, making for a perfect record for his country.
His club career began with a transfer from the academy of Samet-fēniks to Krāslava's FK U20F, where he spent the vast majority of his professional life in the lower divisions of the Latvian system, and established himself as a FK U20F legend with over 300 matches and three Division Five titles. He would only strike out for Georgia to aid F.C. Pampulebi's push for the Erovnuli Liga when nearly 34 years of age, after FK U20F fell into a financial mire.
Alstani professed to appreciate the loyalty, as he displayed Luško's new Number Thirteen jersey together with the player, whose previous Number Four was not available at Grilled Birds. "We both understand that Leongīns' stay here will likely not be long - but he may yet find some glory with us, as another Latvian Jānis Salmiņš once did!"
