Oliver Buff played for FC Zurich for seven years – now he is in Lithuania
Football and politics – only fantasists think that these two things can be separated. Oliver Buff (29) in Lithuania also had to experience this last weekend: During the away game with Zalgiris Vilnius in Telsiai, there were riots between the fan groups after supporters of the home team responded to the anti-Putin calls from the visiting fans with slogans prominent by the Russian President. The game is stopped again when Vilnius is 4-1, on Wednesday Buff and Co. have to drive three hours to the north of the country to play the remaining 15 minutes there – final score 5-3 for Vilnius.
The long-standing FCZ midfield all-rounder (217 appearances from 2010 to 2017) has been playing for the Lithuanian top club (champion 2020 and 2021) since mid-February and is somewhat surprised by the events in Telsiai. Buff on the phone to Blick: “Since the beginning of the war, many yellow and blue flags have been hanging in Vilnius, people are showing solidarity with the Ukrainians. Our fans even maintain a friendship with those of Dynamo Kyiv.”
Buff feels comfortable in Lithuania
The geopolitical proximity to the Ukraine war does not have a major impact on everyday life in the country, which borders on Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, but Buff says: “It would be naïve not to follow the news carefully. And in the talks with the local teammates, you can already feel the uncertainty.”
But the 2009 U17 world champion prefers to talk about the advantages of life in Vilnius. The city has long emancipated itself from the Soviet past and is nicknamed “Silicon Valley of Europe” because of the many start-ups. Buff enthuses: “It’s clean and modern. I feel very comfortable here.”
This is also due to the fact that he regularly receives from his girlfriend and parents from Switzerland – something that was not possible in Malaysia the year before due to the Corona travel restrictions. In Asia he did well in sport with 14 scorer points in 19 games, but he struggled with the loneliness in the long run. And then in autumn 2021, despite the ongoing contract, there was an ugly separation with Selangor FC.
See you again in the summer with ex-club FC Zurich?
Buff ticks it off as an instructive adventure and says: “I’m happy to be back in Europe and want to attack again in sport. Lithuania is the right place for that. The level in the top half of the table is comparable to the Super League.” In the summer he will complete the Champions League qualifier with his club. However, the leap into the premier class should be too high a hurdle, but according to Buff the team is good enough for the group phase of the Europa or Conference League.
Buff, who is under contract in Vilnius until the end of the year and has just completed his distance studies in sports management, is not averse to returning to Switzerland during his active career – on the contrary: “I would like to live close to my environment again in the foreseeable future. In terms of sport, I still feel good enough for the Super League. And at 29, I’m known to be in the best footballing age.” When asked about the rise of his ex-club FC Zurich, Buff says: “It’s really fun to watch the team. You deserve to be champion! I would of course be happy to see you again in the Champions League qualifiers in the summer!”