Premium Liiga season started with a victory!

Today, Sunday, FCI Levadia’s first team played their first Premium Liiga match of 2026 and secured a 2–0 win over FC Kuressaare.

FCI Levadia began the new season and a new era under head coach Vjatšeslav Zahovaiko with a confident victory, defeating FC Kuressaare 2–0 in the opening round of the Premium Liiga at Sportland Arena. Although the hosts controlled the game from the very beginning, the tension remained until the 79th minute when a penalty sealed the final result.

Early pressure brought success

Levadia took the initiative straight from the kickoff. The home side moved the ball fluently in attack and actively searched for opportunities in front of Kuressaare’s goal. The breakthrough came in the 17th minute when Joseph Saliste delivered a cross and Mihkel Ainsalu directed a header towards goal. The ball bounced towards the far post, where Bubacarr Tambedou was in the right place to tap it into the net – 1–0.

Tambedou and Moussa Sambe continued to trouble the Kuressaare defense, but the visitors’ goalkeeper Karl-Romet Nõmm produced several excellent saves to keep his team in the game. Kuressaare’s best chance came after a quick breakthrough by Taavi Jürisoo, who managed to get a promising shot away. After a deflection off Victory Iboro, Levadia goalkeeper Karl Andre Vallner managed to push the ball away.

A more balanced second half

After the break the game became somewhat more balanced. Kuressaare earned several set pieces but were unable to create a clear equalising opportunity. For FCI Levadia, Maksimilian Skvortsov, Victory Iboro and substitute Enock Otoo all came close to scoring the second goal. Skvortsov had the best chance in the 70th minute when, following a corner kick, his effort struck the post near the top corner.

Lehtmets’ sacrifice sealed the win

The decisive moment came in the 79th minute when substitute striker Gregor Lehtmets went to control a bouncing ball in the penalty area and managed to get there first. Kuressaare defender Joonas Vahermägi attempted to clear the ball but struck Lehtmets forcefully in the face.

Lehtmets had to leave the field with a bloody nose and face, but the penalty he earned was confidently converted by Maksimilian Skvortsov – 2–0.

Head coach Vjatšeslav Zahovaiko after the match

“Opening rounds are always full of nerves for everyone. We haven’t had a good match rhythm, which affected us a little. It’s always better when the rhythm is already there, but after a longer break it takes some time to settle in. Overall, though, we handled it well,” Zahovaiko said after the match.

“The overall picture is promising. We managed to keep our defence solid and were rewarded with three points that we worked hard for throughout the game. At times we controlled the match, but there were also moments when Kuressaare had the initiative — you can’t control everything. I saw many positive things, but also that we still need to keep working in the attacking phase to improve the final product. We get into good positions in front of goal, but we need to increase our conversion rate,” Zahovaiko added.

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FCI Levadia’s next opponent in the second round will be Harju JK Laagri. The match will take place at the Laagri artificial pitch on March 15 at 14:30, with a live broadcast on Soccernet TV.

Photo: Anna Andreas / jalgpall.ee