Lithuania midfielder Vykintas Slivka believes his team can beat the odds in their World Cup qualifier against England at Wembley.
Lithuania have reason to be optimistic against the Three Lions, as they surprised everyone at the start of the campaign by keeping Scotland and Slovenia not only at bay, but by almost beating them. In both matches, Lithuania were leading towards the end but then conceded in injury time.
Slivka, who is one of the most talented players in the country, is currently on loan in Ascoli (Serie B) from Juventus. He scored a goal in Lithuania's 2-0 defeat of Slovenia and told ESPN FC that Lithuania are capable of shocking England on Sunday.
"Of course, we can surprise them," Slivka said during an exclusive interview. "As a player and together as a team, we always go just for a victory."
The 21-year-old has just 17 caps for his country, but has confidence he and his teammates won't be awed by the occasion, setting or opponent.
"I think a draw is a positive result in Wembley for every squad," he continued. "Playing at such as big stadium should not affect us. Yes, we're looking forward to it. A stadium does not matter, every pitch is more or less the same size."
When asked how to beat England, he jokingly said: "We have to score more goals," before adding, "our strength is in our team, not in individuals. That's our main weapon."
Lithuania's fortunes were significantly changed after the arrival of a new coach Edgaras Jankauskas last year. Jankauskas, who is considered one of Lithuania's best-ever players, won the Champions League with Jose Mourinho's Porto side in 2004.
"He's one of the best in our history. He's a young and ambitious coach, who always thinks how to improve," Slivka said. "He's very demanding and wants to win every game. It does not matter who the opponent is."
When asked, Slivka said he doesn't count anyone from England's team as a player he admires, and hailed Lithuania's chance to qualify for the World Cup finals.
He said: "I believe we have a team which is good enough. It's still pretty young and we're often underrated just because we are Lithuanians. Our goal is to change this opinion."