Career
Ivanauskas started his playing career and soon became a regular with FK Žalgiris, a club that was a respected member of the old Soviet Premier Division. Ivanauskas spent the 1985 season in the Second Division with CSKA Moscow, but then he returned to Žalgiris. However, in season 1990, he played in the Second Division for Lokomotiv Moscow after Žalgiris decided to transfer to the new Lithuanian League.
In November 1990 he moved abroad to play for Austria Vienna, where he was hugely successful with 52 goals in 122 games during which he was twice the leading scorer in the League. As a result, Ivanauskas helped Austria to win three successive Championships and in June 1992, the Lithuanian striker scored the only goal of the Cup Final against Admira Wacker.
In July 1993, he moved to Germany and became the first Lithuanian to play in the German Bundesliga, playing 100 matches for Hamburger SV between 1993 and 1997 and scoring 17 goals. He was also a hero in his homeland and was voted Lithuanian footballer of the year in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1994.
In the summer of 1997, he moved back to Austria, and signed for SV Salzburg, where he spent two seasons including a spell at St. Pölten before ending his career at a German Regional League side SV Wilhelmshaven in July 1999. Two years later the 35-year old striker had a season with BV Cloppenburg where he retired for good in June 2002.
Read more about this topic: Valdas Ivanauskas
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