Kipras Kažukolovas (born 20 November 2000) is a Lithuanian

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a defender for Kazakhstani club

Astana Astana is the capital city of Kazakhstan. With a population of 1,423,726 within the city limits, it is the second-largest in the country after Almaty, which had been the capital until 1997. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim ...

Early life

Kažukolovas was born on 20 November 2000 in

Kuršėnai Kuršėnai (; Samogitian dialect, Samogitian: ''Koršienā'') is a city in northwestern Lithuania, Šiauliai County, Šiauliai district municipality. It is the twenty-fifth largest city in Lithuania. According to the 2023 estimate, it had 10,651 r ...

, Lithuania. A native of

, Lithuania, he played tennis and basketball as a child.

Club career

Kažukolovas joined the youth academy of English side

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

at the age of sixteen. While playing for the club, he suffered an injury before returning to Lithuania, where he played for amateur side Katastrofa. Altogether, he made seven appearances and scored four goals for the club. In 2021, he signed for Lithuanian side Žalgiris, where he helped the club win the league title and the

2022 Lithuanian Football Cup The 2022 Lithuanian Football Cup, for sponsorship reasons also called is a Single-elimination tournament, single elimination association football, football tournament in Lithuania. The winner of the competition earns a spot in the first qualifyin ...

and played in the

UEFA Conference League The UEFA Conference League (UECL), usually known simply as the Conference League, is an annual football competition organised since 2021 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It is the thir ...

. Three years later, he signed for Kazakhstani side

, helping the club win the 2024 Kazakhstan League Cup.

Style of play

Kažukolovas plays as a defender. Right-footed, he can also play as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. As a child, he played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

before switching to defender.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kažukolovas, Kipras 2000 births Living people Men's association football defenders FK Žalgiris players FC Astana players A Lyga players Kazakhstan Premier League players Lithuanian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Lithuanian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in Kazakhstan Lithuanian expatriate sportspeople in Kazakhstan