Rarely
has any player gone from hero to zero with Leeds United fans as quickly
as Marius Žaliukas. On 7 December 2013, Leeds and Watford were locked
3-3 draw at Elland Road with just seconds to go. Joel Ekstrand had a glorious
chance from 12 yards to hand the visitors all three points in injury-time
and seemed certain to score. Out of nowhere came Žaliukas, racing across
from the opposite flank to launch himself into a miraculous block tackle
to send the shot wide and secure Leeds' point.
'Leeds have finally found a proper centre-back' declared the fans, celebrating
the arrival of a new cult hero. Two red cards during the month that followed
were taken as badges of honour by supporters, appreciating a player who
seemed as if his life depended on the outcome of games. There was little
argument when Brian McDermott extended Žaliukas' contract on New Year's
Eve.
And yet, from then on, the massive Lithuanian could not put a foot right,
culminating in a disastrous personal showing when Sheffield Wednesday
hammered Leeds 6-0 on 11 January. He would make just three more appearances
for Leeds.
Lithuanian Žaliukas, born on 10 November 1983, figured in his domestic
league with Inkaras Kaunas, FBK Kaunas and FK Šilute before coming to
prominence when he moved to Hearts of the Scottish Premier League in 2006
after a successful loan spell. He spent seven years there, playing 193
games and scoring 13 goals, and captaining the team to win the Scottish
Cup in 2012.
Žaliukas made his debut for the Lithuanian national team in 2005 and
won 25 caps over the next decade.
Žaliukas was released by Hearts during the 2013 close season as the club
went into administration. He joined Rangers on trial but rejected the
offer of a contract and tried his luck with Queens Park Rangers.
Fearing he would be unable to secure regular first-team football, he
took up the offer of a trial with Leeds in October 2013.
'He came on the radar a long time ago,' said manager Brian McDermott.
'He's been at QPR, and he's an experienced player. He's here for a number
of days and he has a good pedigree. He's 29, he's captained Hearts, and
to have that bit more experience is important. We have some good young
centre halves here, but to add to that with some experience would be good.'
On 26 October, Žaliukas signed a permanent contract until the end of
the season and made his Leeds debut a week later against Yeovil Town,
coming on as a first-half substitute for Stephen Warnock. After a couple
of substitute appearances, Žaliukas made his first start on 23 November
in a victory against Middlesbrough that took Leeds up to sixth.
Žaliukas' impressive performances during the absence of injured defender
Scott Wootton made him one of the first names on the team sheet under
Brian McDermott alongside Tom Lees and Jason Pearce in Leeds' 3-5-2 formation.
On 30 June 2014, Žaliukas was left out of Leeds' two-week pre-season
training camp to Santa Cristina in Italy. His contract was terminated
by mutual consent a day later.
He joined Rangers on trial, later signing a two-year contract, though
he left the club by mutual consent on 27 August 2015.
He returned to Lithuania to play for FK Žalgiris and retired in January
2017.
Žaliukas was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2013 and on 31 October
2020, the Lithuanian Football Federation confirmed that Žaliukas had died
at the age of 36. Hearts retired the number 26 jersey in Žaliukas' honour
for 2021/22, while making MND Scotland their sponsor for two years.
