The 2016 Esiliiga is the 26th season of the Esiliiga, second-highest Estonian league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992. The season began on 25 February 2016 and concluded on 6 November 2016.
Tulevik won the league, finishing with 89 points and were promoted to the Meistriliiga. It was their first Esiliiga title in history.
Teams Stadia
TeamLocationStadiumCapacityFlora U21TallinnA. Le Coq ArenaInfonet IITallinnInfonet Lasnamäe StadiumJärveKohtla-JärveKohtla-Järve SPK StadiumLevadia U21TallinnMaarjamäe StadiumMaardu LinnameeskondMaarduMaardu StadiumNõmme Kalju U21TallinnHiiu StadiumSantosTartuTamme StadiumTallinna KalevTallinnKalev KeskstaadionTulevikViljandiViljandi StadiumVaprusVändraVändra Stadium
Personnel and kits Team Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsorFlora U21 Joel Indermitte Tõnu PaavoNikeTele2Infonet II Sergei BraginJomaInfonetJärve Aleksei Tikhomirov Mikhail KharitanovichAdidasEuronicsLevadia U21 Vladimir VassiljevAdidasViimsi KeevitusMaardu Linnameeskond Andrei Borissov Maksim KrivošeinAdidasNõmme Kalju U21 Zaur TšilingarašviliAdidasOptibetSantos Siim Säesk Taavi VellemaaUhlsportVärskaTallinna Kalev Marko Pärnpuu Ando HausenbergJakoViisTek MediaTulevik Aivar Lillevere Tanel LangJomaViljandi Aken ja UksVaprus Ranet Lepik Karel OttoMacronMøller Auto Pärnu
Managerial changes TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyPosition in tableIncoming managerDate of appointmentFlora U21 Jürgen HennSigned by Flora21 December 2015Pre-season Joel Indermitte21 December 2015Järve Andrei ŠkaletaMutual consent31 December 2015 Aleksei Tikhomirov1 January 2016Levadia U21 Argo ArbeiterSigned by Flora13 July 20165th Vladimir Vassiljev14 July 2016
Results
League table
Result tables
First half of the season
Second half of the season
Play-offs
Promotion play-offs Maardu Linnameeskond, who finished 4th, faced Pärnu Linnameeskond, the 9th-placed 2016 Meistriliiga side for a two-legged play-off. The winner on aggregate score after both matches earned entry into the 2017 Meistriliiga.
First leg
Second leg
Pärnu Linnameeskond won 9–4 on aggregate and retained their Meistriliiga spot for the 2017 season.
Relegation play-offs Nõmme Kalju U21, who finished 8th, faced Welco, 3rd-placed 2016 Esiliiga B side for a two-legged play-off. The first leg originally ended 3–2 to Nõmme Kalju U21 but they were later ruled to have forfeited the match after fielding an ineligible player Henrik Pürg. According to the rules, the second leg was cancelled and Welco earned entry into the 2017 Esiliiga.
First leg
Second leg
Season statistics
Top goalscorers
RankPlayerClubGoals1 Eduard GolovljovInfonet II392 Vitali GussevMaardu Linnameeskond313 Kristen KährTulevik224 Peeter KleinNõmme Kalju U21205 Erik SorgaFlora U21176 Sander PostTulevik167 Alex MeinhardSantos148 Aleksei BelovTallinna Kalev13 Indrek IlvesTulevik Nikita KogerLevadia U21 Edgar TurInfonet II
Awards
Monthly awards MonthManager of the MonthPlayer of the MonthManagerClubPlayerClubMarch Joel IndermitteFlora U21 Daniil SavitskiTallinna KalevApril Sergei BraginInfonet II Ranet LepikVaprusMay Aivar LillevereTulevik Nikita BrõlinMaardu LinnameeskondJune/July Aivar LillevereTulevik Vitali GussevMaardu LinnameeskondAugust Zaur TšilingarašviliNõmme Kalju U21 Peeter KleinNõmme Kalju U21September Aivar LillevereTulevik Kristen KährTulevikOctober Aivar LillevereTulevik Robert KirssNõmme Kalju U21
Esiliiga Player of the Year Eduard Golovljov was named Esiliiga Player of the Year.
See also 2015–16 Estonian Cup 2016–17 Estonian Cup 2016 Meistriliiga 2016 Esiliiga B
References
External links Official website