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Karolis Skinkys
Karolis in Kerala, 2021
Born (1989-11-16) 16 November 1989 (age 34)
Marijampolė, Lithuania
NationalityLithuanian
Alma materVytautas Magnus University
Employers
TitleSporting Director

Karolis Skinkys (born 16 November 1989) is a Lithuanian football executive, who currently works as the sporting director of the Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters FC.[1][2]

Early life and education

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Karolis was born on 16 November 1989 in the Lithuvanian city Marijampolė. He completed his bachelor's as well as master's degree from the Vytautas Magnus University of Lithuania.[3]

Career

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FK Suduva

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In 2015, Karolis was appointed as the sporting director at FK Sūduva. He played an integral role in the process of team selection and internal leadership management,[4] and during his tenure, the club rose to the top of the A Lyga in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In 2019, the club also qualified for the following year's UEFA Champions League, the first time it did so in its history.[5] Karolis left the club in 2020.

Kerala Blasters

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In March 2020, the Kerala Blasters announced that they have appointed Karolis as their sporting director.[6] Having failed to make it to the playoffs for three successive seasons, the Kochi based club had been unable to replicate its initial success in the league.[7] Karolis was appointed as their first ever sporting director in a bid to overhaul the club.[8] Karolis appointed Kibu Vicuna as the new manager,[9] while parting ways with Sandesh Jhingan, the player with the most appearances for the club. Karolis began implementing a new approach at the Blasters,[10] with new supporting staff that included a tactical analyst and a fitness coach for the first time in the club's existence.[11] He also opted to secure young Indian players in the transfer market. Nishu Kumar was signed on a four-year contract, along with other young players like Givson Singh, Rohit Kumar, Ritwik Das, Puitea and Prabhsukhan Gill.[12] He also changed the foreign signing policy of the club, bringing in some players like Gary Hooper, Vicente Gómez, Costa Nhamoinesu and Bakary Kone despite a limited budget.[13]

Despite these changes, the Blasters had a poor first season under Karolis' supervision. The club finished 10th in the league table and Kibu Vicuna left. "The performance of the team was affected by many details, some mistakes were there, some individual performances were not up to the mark, some mental issues. Kibu was a good professional and did his best, so if you ask me directly, is he the only reason, the answer is definitely no, there were many reasons" said Karolis when asked about the poor performance by the team.[14]

Karolis appointed Ivan Vukomanović as the new head coach on 17 July 2021 ahead of the 2021–22 season.[15] The Blasters qualified for the ISL finals for the first time since 2016. They faced Hyderabad in the final on 20 March 2022, eventually losing in a penalty shoot-out.[16] The club achieved numerous milestones during the season, including a ten-match unbeaten run, topping the table for the first time in history, their highest goals scored, highest points obtained, highest number of wins and fewest losses.[17][18]

In April 2022, Vukomanović's contract was extended for three more years until 2025. On 23 February 2023, Karolis signed a five-year contract with the Blasters till 2028, after the club qualified for consecutive playoffs for the first time in its history.[19][20]

References

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  1. ^ "ISL: Kerala Blasters appoint Karolis Skinkys as new sporting director". theweek.in. 13 March 2020. Archived from the original on 13 March 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  2. ^ "Karolis Skinkys named as the Sporting Director of Kerala Blasters FC". www.indiansuperleague.com. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 3 August 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  3. ^ "Karolis Skinkys: Who is the new Kerala Blasters sporting director". khelnow.com. 18 March 2020. Archived from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  4. ^ ""Sūduvos" direktorius K.Skinkys: apie nueitą kelią, V.Čeburiną ir Marijampolės stadiono ydas". www.15min.lt (in Lithuanian). 29 August 2020. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  5. ^ ""6800 kilometrų karjeros šuolis: iš "Sūduvos" direktoriaus kėdės – į paslaptingąją Indiją". www.15min.lt (in Lithuanian). 15 March 2020. Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  6. ^ "ISL: Kerala Blasters FC announce appointment of sporting director". www.insidesport.co. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Kerala Blasters' Karolis Skinkys wary of injuries in pre-season | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  8. ^ "Kerala Blasters' Karolis Skinkys: Changes to foreign player policy should be gradual | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  9. ^ "We'll get the best players available, says Kerala Blasters' new sporting director". www.onmanorama.com. 12 June 2020. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  10. ^ "How Karolis Skinkys plans to kickstart a new era at Kerala Blasters". khelnow.com. 17 July 2020. Archived from the original on 9 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  11. ^ "Kerala Blasters' Karolis Skinkys: The potential for growth in Kerala is huge". www.goal.com. 19 June 2020. Archived from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  12. ^ "Karolis Skinkys - "We Have All The Ingredients For A Successful Season"". IFTWC - Indian Football Team for World Cup. 20 October 2020. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  13. ^ "ISL 2020-21: 4 reasons why Kerala Blasters will be unstoppable this season". Sportskeeda.com. 6 October 2020. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  14. ^ "Skinkys: Every supporter of Kerala Blasters FC deserves better results and we will make it happen". Indian Super League. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  15. ^ Chatterjee, Sayan (5 June 2021). "ISL: All you need to know about new Kerala Blasters head coach Ivan Vukomanovic". thebridge.in. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  16. ^ "കേരള ബ്ലാസ്‌റ്റേഴ്‌സിന്റെ തലവര മാറ്റിയ കരോളിസ് സ്‌കിന്‍കിസ്; മുത്താണ് ഈ 'ഹെഡ്മാസ്റ്റർ'". Samayam Malayalam (in Malayalam). Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  17. ^ "How Karolis Skinkys built Kerala Blasters' indomitable class of '21-22". ESPN. 2 April 2022. Archived from the original on 21 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  18. ^ "Yellow Alert". Times of India. 5 March 2022. Archived from the original on 12 June 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  19. ^ "Kerala Blasters FC Extends Contract of Sporting Director Karolis Skinkys Until 2028". News18. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  20. ^ "Kerala Blasters FC extends contract of sporting director Karolis Skinkys until 2028". Kerala Blasters FC. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
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