Arvydas Novikovas
Novikovas playing for Heart of Midlothian
Personal information
Date of birth (1990-12-18) 18 December 1990 (age 33)
Place of birth Vilnius, Lithuania
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Winger
Team information
Current team
 Žalgiris
Number 18
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006 FC Vilnius-2 (4)
2007 → Interas (loan) 12 (0)
2008 FC Vilnius 18 (0)
2008–2013 Heart of Midlothian 65 (6)
2011 → St Johnstone (loan) 6 (0)
2013–2015 Erzgebirge Aue 41 (5)
2015–2017 Bochum 20 (0)
2017–2019 Jagiellonia Białystok 80 (21)
2017 Jagiellonia Białystok II 1 (0)
2019–2020 Legia Warsaw 17 (4)
2019 Legia Warsaw II 1 (0)
2020–2022 Erzurumspor 60 (12)
2022–2023 Samsunspor 7 (0)
2023 Hapoel Haifa 6 (0)
2023– Žalgiris 9 (3)
International career‡
2006–2012 Lithuania U21
2010– Lithuania 93 (12)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Lithuania
Baltic Cup
Silver medal – second place 2014
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18 December 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 December 2023

Arvydas Novikovas (born 18 December 1990) is a Lithuanian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Žalgiris.[1]

Club career

Lithuania

Novikovas started his professional football career in Lithuania, his hometown of Vilnius. He first played for the youth side of FK Vilnius and on loan to sister-club Interas-AE Visaginas. At the time in Lithuania, he impressed while on trial with Benfica, but did not sign for them.[2]

Heart of Midlothian

In September 2008, Novikovas signed for Heart of Midlothian.[3] He made his first team debut for Hearts in the last game of the 2008–09 Scottish Premier League season, a goalless draw against Celtic, coming on as a substitute in the 51st minute for David Templeton.[4]

In the 2009–10 season, Novikovas earned a first team place, though spending most of the time on the bench, in most matches. Towards the end of the season, Novikovas signed a contract with the club, a three-year deal which would keep him in Edinburgh until 2013.[5]

Still very young, Novikovas suffered a serious injury and upon his return, he was sent to play some games for Hearts reserve and feeder team Tynecastle FC. There he was injured again after a horror tackle by Alasdair Kilgour, which delayed his return to the Hearts first team. In the 2010–11 season, his playing time in the first team was still slender. Despite the first team lack of opportunities, he scored his first league goal for Hearts in the 5–0 win over Aberdeen at Tynecastle on 11 December 2010.[6] Throughout the remainder of the 2010–11 season, he went on loan to Scottish Premier League's rivals St Johnstone.

In the 2011–12 season, on 13 August 2011, he struck his second goal for Hearts, again against Aberdeen, after starting the game up front alongside John Sutton, who scored the other two goals in a 3–0 victory for Hearts. A week after scoring his second goal, he made his European debut, playing the entire game in the second leg of the UEFA Europa League Qualification Round, a goalless draw against Tottenham Hotspur, which eliminated Hearts after a 5–0 loss in the first leg.[7] He's been in and out of the first team ever since joining the club. In a 2–2 draw with Dundee United,[8] Novikovas came off the bench to score an equaliser, his third goal for the club. After the match, Novikovas said his equaliser against Dundee United was the best he had ever scored.[9]

In the 2012–13 season, Novikovas first team opportunities started to increase, following the departure of a bunch of players. He scored his fourth goal for the club in a 2–2 draw against Inverness Caledonian Thistle on 18 August 2012[10] and played both legs in the Europa League Qualification Round against Liverpool, which proved to be too strong for the Scottish side. Still the Edinburgh-based team pulled out a 1–1 draw in the second leg. In March 2013, Novikovas was then included in the substitute bench for the final of the Scottish League Cup against St Mirren and would come on for Jamie Walker on the 64th minute, as Hearts lost 3–2.[11]

The official Hearts website announced that he had left the club to pursue his career elsewhere on 31 May 2013.[12] After his departure, Edinburgh Evening News reported that if Novikovas joined a new club, the club would receive £100,000 compensation.[13]

St Johnstone (loan)

On the last day of the January 2011 transfer window, Novikovas went on loan to St Johnstone until the end of the 2010–11 season.[14] He made his debut for St Johnstone in their 2–0 victory over Hamilton on 1 February.[15] In all he made six appearances for the Perth side.[16]

Erzgebirge Aue

On 22 June 2013, it was announced that Novikovas signed a three-year deal with Erzgebirge Aue. It was thought that Novikovas was signed as Jan Hochscheidt replacement who has moved to Eintracht Braunschweig.[17] During first league match for his new team Novikovas received two yellow cards and was sent off. In fourth league match for Aue he scored double, helping team to reach 2–1 victory over FC Energie Cottbus.

VfL Bochum

On 24 July 2015, VfL Bochum announced that they signed Novikovas for free from FC Erzgebirge Aue on a two-year deal[18] Novikovas played 20 games for VfL Bochum, providing only one assist on his stay there. On 12 January 2017, Vfl Bochum confirmed that Novikovas has left for Jagiellonia Białystok on a free.

Jagiellonia Białystok

Novikovas joined Jagiellonia Białystok on a free, signing a contract until 31 December 2019.[19] Novikovas was given the number 9 and was immediately a starter. During his two season there he has helped Jagiellonia Białystok finish second twice in a row. He scored 16 goals and provided 12 assists in the 58 games he has played for them, starting the 2018–19 season with three goals and two assists in his first nine games.

International career

Novikovas represented the Lithuania under-21's when he was just a 16-year-old.[20]

In May 2009, he was called up to the Lithuania squad, for their FIFA World Cup qualifier with Romania.[20] On 9 September, Novikovas scored for Lithuania under-21s 1–1 against Macedonia under-21 in the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Group 9 match.[21]

On 25 May 2010, he gained his first cap against Ukraine in Kharkiv.

Career statistics

Club

As of 18 December 2023[1][22][23]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
FC Vilnius-2 2006 I Lyga 4 — —
2008 I Lyga 18 0 — —
Total 4 0 0 0 0
Interas-AE Visaginas (loan) 2007 A Lyga 12 0 — —
Heart of Midlothian 2008–09 Scottish Premier League 1 0 0 0 0 0 — 1 0
2009–10 Scottish Premier League 13 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 14 0
2010–11 Scottish Premier League 6 1 1 0 1 1 — 8 2
2011–12 Scottish Premier League 14 2 0 0 2 0 2 0 18 2
2012–13 Scottish Premier League 26 2 1 0 4 0 2 0 33 2
Total 60 5 2 0 7 1 5 0 74 6
St Johnstone (loan) 2010–11 Scottish Premier League 6 0 0 0 0 0 — 6 0
Erzgebirge Aue 2013–14 2. Bundesliga 20 3 1 0 — — 21 3
2014–15 2. Bundesliga 21 2 2 0 — — 23 2
Total 41 5 3 0 0 0 0 0 44 5
VfL Bochum 2015–16 2. Bundesliga 15 0 0 0 — — 15 0
2016–17 2. Bundesliga 5 0 0 0 — — 5 0
Total 20 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20 0
Jagiellonia Białystok 2016–17 Ekstraklasa 15 3 0 0 — — 15 3
2017–18 Ekstraklasa 34 9 1 1 — 4 0 39 10
2018–19 Ekstraklasa 31 9 5 0 — 4 0 40 9
Total 80 21 6 1 0 0 8 0 94 22
Jagiellonia Białystok II 2016–17[24] III liga 1 0 — — — 1 0
Legia Warsaw 2019–20 Ekstraklasa 17 4 2 0 — 5 0 24 4
Legia Warsaw II 2019–20[25] III liga 1 0 — — — 1 0
Erzurumspor 2020–21 Süper Lig 31 4 1 0 — — 32 4
2021–22 TFF First League 31 9 0 0 — — 31 9
Total 62 13 1 0 — — 63 13
Samsunspor 2022–23 TFF First League 7 0 1 0 — — 8 0
Hapoel Haifa 2022–23 Israeli Premier League 6 0 0 0 — — 6 0
Žalgiris 2023 A Lyga 9 3 0 0 — 4 0 13 3
Career total 340 55 21 1 7 1 22 0 390 56

International

As of 18 December 2023[26]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Lithuania 2010 2 0
2011 4 0
2012 4 0
2013 4 0
2014 9 2
2015 4 1
2016 7 1
2017 7 1
2018 10 0
2019 7 3
2020 6 4
2021 13 0
2022 8 0
2023 13 0
Total 93 12
As of match played 18 November 2020[27]
Scores and results list Lithuania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Novikovas goal.
List of international goals scored by Arvydas Novikovas
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 29 May 2014 Olimpiskais Stadions, Ventspils, Latvia 16  Finland 1–0 1–0 2014 Baltic Cup
2 8 September 2014 San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino 19  San Marino 2–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
3 9 October 2015 Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia 26  Slovenia 1–1 1–1 UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
4 11 October 2016 LFF Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania 33  Malta 2–0 2–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5 10 June 2017 LFF Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania 37  Slovakia 1–2 1–2 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 7 June 2019 LFF Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania 53  Luxembourg 1–1 1–1 UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
7 10 June 2019 Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, Serbia 54  Serbia 1–3 1–4 UEFA Euro 2020 qualification
8 17 November 2019 LFF Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania 58  New Zealand 1–0 1–0 Friendly
9 7 October 2020 A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia 59  Estonia 1–0 3–1 Friendly
10 3–0
11 11 October 2020 LFF Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania 60  Belarus 1–0 2–2 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C
12 18 November 2020 Almaty Central Stadium, Almaty, Kazakhstan 64  Kazakhstan 2–1 2–1 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C

Honours

Legia Warsaw

References

  1. ^ a b "Arvydas Novikovas" (in German). kicker. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
  2. ^ Nowy rok – nowy Arwi. Mniej gada, mniej narzeka i skupia się na piłce weszlo.com
  3. ^ "Hearts winger Andrew Driver to miss out against Inverness". Daily Record. 18 September 2008. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  4. ^ Lindsay, Clive (24 May 2009). "Celtic 0–0 Hearts". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 29 May 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  5. ^ "Hot prospect Arvydas Novikovas pens new deal with Hearts". Daily Record. 6 May 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  6. ^ "SPL: Hearts 5 Aberdeen 0". Daily Record. 12 December 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  7. ^ "Hearts boss defends team changes for Spurs tie". BBC Sport. 24 August 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  8. ^ Hearts FC (28 April 2012). "Dundee Utd 2–2 Hearts". Hearts FC. Archived from the original on 1 May 2012. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
  9. ^ "Hearts hero Arvy Novikovas: Equaliser was best goal of my career.. celebration was the worst". Daily Record. 29 April 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  10. ^ "Hearts 2–2 Inverness CT". BBC Sport. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  11. ^ "St Mirren 3 – 2 Hearts". BBC Sport. 17 March 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  12. ^ "Hearts confirm winger Arvydas Novikovas to leave Tynecastle". BBC Sport. 31 May 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  13. ^ "Hearts set to profit from Arvydas Novikovas exit". Edinburgh Evening News. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  14. ^ "McInnes signs Arvydas Novikovas on loan as two depart". BBC Sport. BBC. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  15. ^ "St Johnstone 2 – 0 Hamilton". BBC Sport. BBC. 1 February 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  16. ^ "Games played by Arvydas Novikovas in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  17. ^ "Erzgebirge verpflichtet Arvydas Novikovas" [Erzgebirge signs Arvydas Novikovas] (in German). kicker. 21 June 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  18. ^ e.V, VfL Bochum 1848 Fussballgemeinschaft. "VfL sign Arvydas Novikovas - VfL Bochum 1848". www.vfl-bochum.de (in German). Archived from the original on 16 October 2018. Retrieved 16 October 2018.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  19. ^ "Arvydas Novikovas w Jagiellonii" (in Polish). 90minut. Retrieved 12 January 2017.
  20. ^ a b Anderson, Barry (28 May 2009). "Hearts youngster Novikovas to be fast-tracked to full Lithuania squad". Edinburgh Evening News. Archived from the original on 31 May 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
  21. ^ "Macedonians held by Lithuania". UEFA. 9 September 2009. Retrieved 10 September 2009.
  22. ^ "Arvydas Novikovas Stats". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  23. ^ "Games played by Arvydas Novikovas Stats in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  24. ^ "Sezon 2016/17". 90minut.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  25. ^ "Sezon 2019/20". 90minut.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  26. ^ "Novikovas, Arvydas". National Football Teams. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  27. ^ "Arvydas Novikovas". European Football. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  28. ^ "Legia mistrzem Polski 2019/20! Oni zdobyli tytuł" (in Polish). Legia Warsaw. 11 July 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2023.

External links

Lithuanian Footballer of the Year
Categories