THERE aren’t many Finns involved in top-level European football, so it’s unsurprising to discover that Pasi Lankinen, FC Barcelona’s Marketing and Business Development Manager, has a slightly more complicated identity.

“In my heart I am a Finn, but culturally I feel Catalan,” explains Lankinen. “My parents are from Lahti, and I was born there, but we already lived in Lisbon at that time. I have never lived in Lahti. I spent my childhood in Lisbon, Madrid and then Barcelona where I lived from the age of 6 until I was 12 years old. Then we moved to Finland (Anjalankoski and then Espoo), and I graduated at Pohjois-Tapiolan lukio.”

After that, Lankinen returned to Barcelona to study business at ESADE, completed his Finnish military service and spent five years as a management consultant in the Telecoms sector, before joining FC Barcelona in 2003.

“I spent my formative years in Barcelona, and so I already was a Barcelona fan,” continues Lankinen in English that has a slight Iberian accent. Although he never considered Barcelona’s cross-town rivals Espanyol, or any other Spanish team for that matter, Lankinen does have some sympathy for Kuusysi and, since their senior team folded, FC Lahti.

Lankinen’s arrival at Barcelona coincided with big changes in wake of Joan Laporta’s election as president. Discontent with the previous regime of Josep Lluís Núñez had grown, and the club was seen as distant from the fans and members. The opposition to Núñez chrystallised around the Elefant Blau group, led by Laporta, and although a vote of no-confidence failed in 1998 Laporta eventually won the presidency in 2003.

This democratic process and structure is distinct from the models of football ownership common in the United Kingdom, where supporter involvement is limited. The massive debts and exploitation of supporters implemented by American owners such as the Glazer family, who own Manchester United, and Tom Hicks and George Gillett, who bought Liverpool FC in 2007, is not part of the Barcelona model. So given his business education and experience, is Lankinen frustrated by the restraints placed on him by fan ownership? Does it make his job easier or more difficult?

“For many football clubs, there are two goals: to make a nice spectacle and to win trophies, and to provide cash for shareholders to extract,” Lankinen states. “We do not have that pressure, and our only goal is to make a nice spectacle and win trophies for our fans and community. This makes it easier for us to make decisions that may have long-term benefit, but don’t provide immediate commercial gains. In that sense, it makes my job easier.”

To correct the communication difficulties, a new Customer Service centre or Supporter’s Office was established. It now receives 800,000 calls per year (previously fans had just called the office and workers had answered queries as best they could). Membership was opened to non-season-ticket holders, and the web-based system for season ticket holders to return tickets for games they could not attend was improved to allow more people to attend matches.

As a result, membership has more than doubled to 170,000, revenues have increased from €120m to €385m, an average of 20,000 more tickets are sold for every game as a result of the season ticket returns, and the club has won two Champions Leagues and a host of domestic honours, all while the club has retained its ideals. The club’s first ever shirt sponsor is UNICEF, a co-operation that cost the organisation millions of euros in lost fees that a commercial sponsor would have paid.

“Everything came together in this (UNICEF) equation,” Lankinen maintains. “The General Assembly (FC Barcelona’s annual general meeting) permitted a sponsor, but it would have been difficult to go straight to a commercial brand. This was a chance to retain our brand as a ’social club’, and bring value to UNICEF, who we already helped to use football as a tool around the world.

“It allows us to position ourselves and fits very well. There is a desire among companies to associate themselves with us when they are developing their Corporate Social Responsibility strategies, as we are active and committed, so there is a commercial upside as well – not as much as a sponsor would pay for the place on the shirt, but an upside all the same.”

“We are very active in all aspects of the community, and when we do something we do not just write a cheque. The Barcelona foundation will lead the project and evenplayers or the president get involved.”

The Barcelona Foundation is the hub of many of the social projects Barcelona is involved in. One aspect of their work is in the integration of migrants, something Lankinen has a feeling for with his cross-cultural background, and something that is fundamental to sport in general and football in particular.

“We do have specific integration projects, but I think that if you support the same team that is already a very integrating thing, no?” muses Lankinen. “I think that Catalonia has a very welcoming culture, like Spanish or Mediterranean culture in general. You will probably end up with the same number of really close friends here as in Finland, but it’s much easier to make a looser connection with a wide circle of people here.”

Since the opening of membership to non-season ticket holders, one aspect of Barcelona’s development has been the internationalisation of the membership. Currently around 7-8% of the membership is based outside of Spain, many of whom find the ownership model an attractive aspect of the €155 package.

“A club like Barcelona still has space to grow its fan base,” Lankinen boldly asserts. “there is a lot of untapped potential in the United States, and in India, China and the Far East.”

Given his sympathy for FC Lahti and Finnish background, its easy to see a conflict here. If football-interested people spend their time and money following Barcelona and other super-clubs, will this adversely affect the smaller football clubs, countries and leagues? Or is there a symbiotic relationship, whereby greater interest in football can benefit all members of the ‘football family’?

“That’s a difficult question,” answers Lankinen. “I think what usually happens is that people support a local team and then another, foreign team, like Barcelona. In this case it can be symbiotic. It is true that there is a finite amount of money and time for people to spend on football, but it is not necessarily the case that local clubs lose out.”

“The income for a club like Barcelona can be divided into three roughly equal parts: matchday revenues, media rights, and sponsorship and merchandising. Only matchday and merchandising revenue comes directly from fans, the rest is companies paying as people interact with the club via different media.”

This model is very different from that prevalent in Finnish football, where 80-90% of income comes from sponsors as the crowds and gate revenues are so small. Is there any chance this culturally Catalan Finn might return to use his ideas and experience with some Finnish club?

“I would not rule it out, but there are no plans,” deadpans Lankinen.

In a year when Finnish football looks set to welcome back many players from spells abroad, it may be that the most significant potential returnee is set to stay abroad for a few years yet.

It has been a pretty good weekend for all Scandinavians on the continent, although  those who managed to take their heads out of their own or in a weird case other peoples behinds suffered different emotions, just ask Johan Elmander and Brian Jensen.

Swede Elmander finally broke his scoring duct by putting Bolton Wanderers one nil up against local rivals Wigan Athletic. The strike by the former Toulouse star was his first since December as his Bolton side eventually ran out four nil winners. After the match, Bolton manager Owen Coyle was keen to heap praise on the Swede “Johan has been outstanding for me from day one. I am so pleased for Johan as he has worked so hard, you ask any of his team mates how valuable he is to the team”.

Rasmus Elm was inspirational as AZ Alkmaar trounced RKC Waalwijk 6-2.

Fresh from  heading the rear off Kevin Doyle in a rather unique way, Jensen picked himself up as Burnley battled valiantly in a relegation six pointer with Wolves. Unfortunately for the Dane they lost 2-1.

In the clash of the titans in Holland, Ajax romped to a 4-1 win over PSV Eindhoven. The win leaves their Dennis Rommedahl, Christian Eriksen and co six points adrift of top side FC Twente. The Danish duo will be hoping PSV can take points off the Enschede side next week.

Arsenal continue to keep the pressure on both Manchester United and Chelsea at the top of the Premiership. The Gunners seemed destined for a one all draw with Hull City until Nicklas Bendtner struck a 93^rd minute winner. Following a horrific showing last weekend, the Dane has stepped up his game with this goal against Hull been his fourth of the week, following his first ever hat trick as Arsenal thrashed Porto on Tuesday. With an easier run in than their rivals, few will bet against Arsenal winning a fourth Premiership  title. After the match the Dane professed the belief his side boast  “We showed great character as we did against Stoke and we are going to keep on doing this. I always believe that until the last minute we can do it because i have seen it so many times”.

Peter Lovenkrands scored his 13^th goal of the season with relative ease as Newcastle United stormed to an opening lead in the Tyne-Tees derby. The game eventually finished two all with the Dane`s side grabbing a late equaliser after falling behind.

Roda Jc fans were no doubt delighted to see that Mads Junker was able to line out against NEC Nijmegen, after their star striker suffered a minor injury last week. The Dane picked up where he left off and fired home his 13^th goal of the season.

Gylfi Sigurdsson`s rise from anonymity this year has surely earmarked him for bigger things. The Iceland star bagged both goals, including one from the spot as Reading continued their revival under Brian Mc Dermott by beating Bristol City. He now has 12 goals for the season and has played a major role under McDermott who was full of admiration for him “Gylfi is a natural goalscorer, he is a special boy and has real quality. We have had him here a long time and he always seems to get into the right areas”.

Kari Arnason put the ball in the right net this week but unfortunately for him, his Plymouth Argyle side were held 1-1 by Coventry City.

Leon Andreasen was another Scandinavian who found the net. The Norwegian opened the scoring as his Hannover 96 side earned a 2-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in a match that saw two red cards for the latter.

John Arne Riise`s Roma missed the chance to move within four points of Serie A leaders Inter Milan as they were held to a three all draw with a Livorno side inspired by Cristiano Lucarelli who bagged a hat trick.

Sami Hyypia`s Bayer Leverkusen side are back in the race for the Bundesliga title after a comprehensive 4-2 win over Hamburg.

Photo by Tero Wester

Last year’s championship-winning manager has taken a good deal of stick in his time. His Finland side underachieved, and at HJK he has been criticised for caution and a lack of imagination. This picture captures him seemingly in the midst of the TPS players at the League Cup game played on Friday 5 March. The game finished 2-1 to HJK, so did it signal a new dawn in perceptions of ‘the walrus’, as Muurinen is affectionately known?

“It was a typical training game, like all other League cup games,” says photographer Tero.

Alexei Eremenko Jr has signed for FF Jaro on loan from his fantastically named Ukrainian club, Metalist Kharkiv. The 26 year old, who can play as an attacking midfielder or forward but has most often been seen sitting on the bench in recent years, will spend the whole season at the Jakobstad club according to Österbottens Tidning.

“This is really fantastic for our whole club,”enthused Jaro CEO Niklas Storbacka. “It will raise interest in Jaro and the whole football league.”

“We’ve signed an experienced player, who has played at the top level for many years,” said Jaro coach and father of star signing, Alexei Eremenko Sr. “I expect him to lead the way and be an example to our younger players.”

The last part may have raised some eyebrows. He has driven while drunk, turned up unfit to national team training camps, refused to answer the phone when Stuart Baxter has tried to contact him (the redoubtable Brit eventually turned to sending a text message to explain his omoission – “it was a very long sms,” said the Finland manager) and generally not acted the way one might expect a top class footballer to act.

He will join the growing ranks of returnees in Veikkausliiga when the season kicks off in just over a months’ time. Among others, the Finnish Veikkausliiga players with experience abroad include Jonatan Johansson (TPS), Jari Litmanen (FC Lahti), Toni Kuivasto (Haka), Janne Saarinen (HJK), Janne Hietanen (AC Oulu) and Juha Pasoja (JJK). Add in Henri Myntti (TamU), Aki Riihilahti (HJK) and Mika Nurmela (AC Oulu), and there will be a sizeable contingent of players with extensive foreign experience under their belts.

The main reasons for this are the cutbacks and budgetary pressures exerted at clubs in bigger leagues. Johansson has been searching for a club for some time, and eventually gave up and went back to his home town club – he is settled in Scotland but Pargas is probably the second best option, as Finns do love their summer cottages so. Eremenko had trials at various clubs and was rejected by Bristol City last summer, and probably sees a spell at Jaro as a way to get his career back on track and at least get picked for every game.

The economic climate, while economically damaging for individual players, does present an opportunity for Finnish clubs. Many of the returness would have gone back a long time ago if they were Swedish, indeed some of them are even returning FROM Sweden. If they can raise the playing standards, crowd levels and general interest in domestic football here, the game will benefit enormously. If they act the big star, don’t take it seriously and leave in August when the transfer window opens, the benefits may be very much shorter-term.

A hectic week on the international and domestic front culminated with some cracking and not so cracking encounters. The main talking point is on John Carew`s return to form and whether he can maintain it to fire Aston Villa into fourth spot come May. This weekend also saw some big teams lose their first matches of the season.

Herman Hreidarsson will be returning to Wembley after his Portsmouth side produced a shock in the FA Cup quarter final. The south coast side defied expectations to beat Birmingham City two nil and to move on to a semi final date at the illustrious stadium.

John Carew blasted Aston Villa towards a semi final date with Chelsea as they came back from two goals down to beat Reading 4-2. The former Rosenborg man grabbed a hat trick as Villa stepped up a few gears after the break. His third and final goal came from the penalty spot after he was hauled down by Icelandic star Ivar Ingimarsson .After the match Villa manager heaped praise on the Norwegian ,”Gabriel Agbonlahor was poorly this morning and had to go home so John steps in and scores a second-half hat-trick which was absolutely delightful. John at his hungriest can perform like that. He got the equaliser for us and his game lifted two or three-fold.

“Goals give him confidence and the next thing you know he is running the game. He can do that and I want him to perform like that more often. I would be delighted if he could score a hat-trick every week but first he needs to find a level of performance which is up there with the best strikers.” As for Reading and their Icelandic contingent it was the end of a lively and memorable FA Cup run.

Brede Hangeland was sure his effort was sailing but Spurs man of the match Heurelho Gomes stopped the big Norwegian. Hangeland`s Fulham now face a FA Cup quarter final replay at White Hart Lane.  

John Arne Riise`s Roma side were held to a nil all draw at home to rivals Ac Milan. The result leaves the Norwegian`s side two points behind Milan as they strive to catch Inter at the top of Serie A.

Nicklas Bendtner will be hoping he wont have to endure another nightmare like yesterday. The Danish striker missed a ton of chances , including a header from six yards out that he really should have scored. His misery was compounded when he was substituted with 17 minutes remaining and was greeted with an ironic standing ovation by the Gunners fans. Arsenal ran out 3-1 winners.

Peter Lovenkrands fired home a brace as Newcastle United trounced a hapless Barnsley side 6-1 at St James` Park. With the scores level, visiting goalkeeper Luke Steele was dismissed on the stroke of half time , as the floodgates began to open. The Dane bagged the opening goal of the game from the resulting penalty as the hosts went in one up at the break. The second half was somewhat a foregone conclusion, but nobody could predict Newcastle would score another five goals.  Three minutes after the restart Lovenkrands prodded home a fine header which his took his tally to the season for twelve. Amazingly enough all his goals have come on home ground.

Dennis Rommedahl sealed a comprehensive 3-0 victory for Ajax against Sparta Rotterdam. The superb volley was a fine end to a dazzling run by wonderkid Christian Eriksen, who earned his first cap for Denmark in midweek. The Danish duo will be anticipating next weeks crunch clash with fierce rivals PSV Eindhoven.

Jon Dahl Tomasson sat out Feyenoord`s 4-2 away win over Roda JC. An action packed game also included tow red cards with Feyenoord goalkeeper Darley been dismissed late on. Roda JC will be hoping an injury to Danish striker Mads Junker will not be too serious. The striker currently has 11 goals for the season but had to be replaced after half an hour.     

Kasper Schmeichel kept another clean sheet as Notts County ran out 3-0 winners away to Accrington Stanley. New manager Steve Cotterill has gotten off to a great start with three wins from three and will be hoping to maintain this form as the Magpies push for promotion.

Thomas Sorensen`s FA Cup dream ended as Chelsea beat Stoke City 2-0.

Morten Rasmussen helped Celtic to a 2-0 victory over Falkirk. The former Brondby star threaded the ball through the Bairns defence for strike partner Robbie Keane to bag his first of two goals.

Simon Kjaer did not let talk of his future deter him as his Palermo side beat Livorno 1-0 to regain fourth place. Talks of a move for the Dane this summer are gathering pace again.

Magnus Troest was one of two players to be sent off as his Recreativo De Huelva side earned a 1-1 all draw with Celta Vigo. The former Midjtylland star was dismissed in the 78 th minute but this did not hinder his side`s chances of getting an equaliser as Javi Fuego popped up late on to level matters. 

Christian Poulsen won the battle of the Danes in Serie A as his Juventus side beat Per Kroldrup`s Fiorentina 2-1.

Jonas Olsson is enduring a tough time lately. He was called into the Swedish squad for the friendly with Wales but never made his debut, West Brom fans were seen rowing with him after a match last week, oh and the small matter of a 3-1 defeaat at QPR will do him no good. 

Zlatan Ibrahimovic is another Swede who is enduring a horrid time. Barcelona grinded out a 2-2 draw with Almeria in a match that will be remembered for nothing more than shocking refereeing decisions. Carlos Clos Gomez was the man in the middle and made some bizarre decisions. He delayed the start of the match by 15 minutes as he was unhappy with Almeria`s shirts which carried a message for the victims of the earthquake in Chile. After the match started, the error prone ref was not far from further cock ups . Almeria will feel hard done by as he awarded Barca a free which was never a free but the Catalans equalised from it. Barca manager Pep Guardiola was harshly sent to the stands for protesting claims for a penalty, he was soon followed by Swede Ibrahimovic. The striker who was unlucky not to find the scoresheet barely touched the face of rival Domingo Cisma, who theatrically threw himself to the ground and thus earned the former Ajax man a red card.  Guardiola was haooy afterwards despite the farce and the result “we were playing with ten men and without a coach. But the pride in this team is great. With ten men we were still looking for the third goal and thats important”.

Marcus Berg sat out Hamburg`s one nil win over struggling Hertha Berlin.

Az Alkmaar`s Scandinavian contingent enjoyed a resounding 4-1 home win over Heerenveen. Swede`s Pontus Wernbloom and Rasmus Elm, Finn Niklas Moisander and Dane Simon Poulsen all played their part as Alkmaar came back from behind.

Former Elfsborg man Lasse Nilsson scored for Vitesse Arnhem as they drew 1-1 with fellow relegation candidates ADO Den Haag .

Ola Toivonen was sprung from the bench after only fifteen minutes but the Swede could do little as his PSV Eindhoven crashed to a shock  2-1 defeat at NAC Breda. The misery of their  first defeat of the season was compounded as FC Twente beat RKC Waalwijk 1-0, courtesy of a Kenneth Perez goal, to move two points clear of Fred Rutten`s men at the top of the Eredivisie.

PSV Were not the only side in Europe who lost for the first time this week. Sami Hyypia`s Bayer Leverkusen side went down 3-2 at struggling Nurnberg. The result ends their 25 game unbeaten run and blows the Bundesliga title race wide open.

With a full card of friendlies it was impossible that all the favourites would win, just ask Morten Olsen and Denmark. Nonetheless it was a good night for the Nordic sides , with only two of six sides falling to defeat.

Slovakia 0-1 Norway

Rosenborg winger Morten Moldskred bagged the only goal as Norway defeated World Cup bound Slovakia in Zilina. It was Egil Olsen`s side`s third win in as many matches, following recent victories over South Africa and Switzerland . Norway are starting to show good form ahead of the European qualifiers , which begin at the end of the year, but first they must sit agonisingly through a World Cup, which they will not participate in.

Norway: Jon Knudsen, Tom Hogli, Kjetil Waehler, John Arne Riise, Brede Hangeland (Vadim Demidov, 74), Bjorn Helge Riise (Ciljan Skjelbred, 62), Henning Hauger, Morten Gamst Pedersen, Christian Grindheim (Alexander Tettey, 90), Daniel Braaten (Erik Huseklepp, 62), Morten Moldskred (Espen Ruud, 85).

Austria 2-1 Denmark

Denmark suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of European minnows Austria. The Austrians , who are currently ranked 56^th in the world, went ahead early on before Nicklas Bendtner equalised with a well taken header. Austria regained the lead shortly before half time when Roma Wallner sealed the win for Didi Constantini`s team.

Denmark will face the Netherlands, Japan and Cameroon in the group stages of the World Cup this summer. The Danes will really need to step up their game to have any chance of qualifying from a tricky group.

“We always want to win, but I knew before the match it was going to get difficult,” Denmark coach Morten Olsen said. “We had to bring some young and inexperienced players. It’s important to have everyone available in two, three months from now.”

Denmark: Thomas Sorensen, Simon Kjaer, Per Kroldrup, Leon Jessen (Michael Lumb, 46), Michael Silberbauer, Thomas Kahlenberg, Daniel Jensen (Christian Eriksen, 56), William Kvist Jorgensen (Peter Nymann, 76), Michael Krohn-Dehli, Dennis Rommedahl (Soeren Rieks, 46), Nicklas Bendtner (Rakjo Lekic, 61).

Cyprus 0-0 Iceland

Cyprus and Iceland played out a dull and unexciting friendly in Larnaca. The fixture showed why both teams are no where near World Cup qualification.

Iceland: Arni Arason (Gunnleifur Gunnleifson, 39), Solvi Ottesen, Kari Arnason, Ragnar Sigurdsson (Arnor Adalsteinsson, 67), Helci Danielsson, Rurik Gislason, Aron Gunnarsson, Olafur Skulason, Emil Hallfredsson, Heidar Helguson.

Malta 1-2 Finland

Finland came from a goal behind to beat Malta . Roman Eremenko equalised from the penalty spot for the Finns before substitute Mika Vayrynen popped up with a timely winner.

Manager Stuart Baxter offered a thorough analysis of the match afterwards “We knew that to come here and play well without a full team would be difficult. Malta made it hard for us but we expected this because even Sweden had problems when they played here.

“The first 20 minutes were hectic for us because we didn’t do well in opening up play and Malta were very lively. Gradually, we gained control and we continued like that in the second half. I’m satisfied that we scored two goals and won the game.

“Overall, it was a very good exercise for my team.”

Finland: P. Enckelman (‘46 O. Fredrikson), V. Lampi, N. Moisander, J. Raitala, R. Eremenko, K. Hamalainen (77 J. Kolkka), J. Litmanen (‘46 M. Varyrynen), T. Sparv (‘46 T. Tainio), J. Johansson (‘83 T. Pukki), R. Porokara, T. Kallio (‘57 J. Lyyski).

Wales 0-1 Sweden

Erik Hamren enjoyed a winning start to his tenure as Sweden boss as a solitary Johan Elmander goal sealed the win at the Liverty Stadium. Elmander will be relieved to have finally found the net. The striker is still revered in his country but must try and find some from for his club, Bolton Wanderers, as they fight to remain in the Premiership. Working under Rosenborg manager Hamren may be the catalyst he needs.

Hamren was full of optimism after the match “we shall improve a lot after this result. For me the basis is that winning mentality, if you have that then the play will come“, he said.

Sweden: Eddie Gustafsson, Olof Mellberg, Daniel Majstorovic, Behrang Safari (Oscar Wendt, 62), Sebastian Larsson, Rasmus Elm (Tobias Hysen, 59), Anders Svensson, Kim Kallstrom (Viktor Elm, 81), Johan Elmander (Pontus Wernbloom, 59), Ola Toivonen, Christian Wilhelmsson (Mikael Lustig, 73).

Georgia 2-1 Estonia

A last gasp striker from David Siradze seled a 2-1 win for Georgia over Estonia. After falling one behind, Ats Purje believed his late equaliser was enough to send both sides home happy but that was not the case as a depleted Estonian outfit came up short in Tbilisi.

Sami Ristilä celebrates Drogheda's first ever championship. Photo cortesy of Drogheda United FC

The Boyne Valley In County Louth is a place often affiliated with the legends of Irish myths, some legends are born and others are made. Over a thousand miles away in Valkeakoski, Finland on August 15th 1974 ,a new icon for the valley was born.

Sami Ristilä made his first appearance for his hometown club FC Haka at the age of 17 . After five years at Tehttaan Kenttä  he left the club he dearly loved and moved to FC Zwolle in Holland. Spells at FC Jokerit and Mypa would follow before 2002 saw his second coming at Haka.

Though the combative midfielder only featured 49 times over the following three years, he did enough to win a Veikkausliga winners medal in 2004.The Haka story was far from over but a new fairytale was about to begin.

Drogheda United brought Ristilä to the League of Ireland in 2005 for what would prove to be the most successful period of his career. The performances of the Finnish international at the heartbeat of the Drogs midfield saw him become a firm fans’ favourite. His ability to score goals when they were dearly needed further cemented his position amongst the United faithful.

Journalist Eimear Taffe remarked shortly after his arrival that “Sami is an extremely technically gifted player with an excellent footballing brain . His experience will be vital to all those around him”.Taffe was proven right as the Finn became a catalyst for Drogheda`s success.

During his silverware laden spell at United Park, Sami captured the FAI Cup in 2005, two Setanta Cup winners medals in 2006 and 2007, and in that same year he helped the club etch their name into Irish football history by claiming their first League of Ireland title.

That inaugural title victory paved the way for the Boynesiders to grace the Champions League Qualifying rounds. This was not Ristila’s first taste of European Football at the club as they had during his time played in the Uefa Cup, clocking up victories against HJK Helsinki and Libertas in the first rounds in 2006 and 2007, only to be eliminated in the second rounds by IK Start and Helsingborgs respectively.

Damien Lynch played with Sami during both cup runs and is full of praise for the Finnish star “I loved playing with Sami. He always gave 100 % and the supporters knew that. He was technically brilliant and the best trainer I have ever seen. He boasts a top pedigree and is an overall nice lad. His ability to use both feet is tremendous”.

Mark McCadden backed up Lynch’s claims. McCadden is a renowned football journalist who purely deals with League Of Ireland affairs. ”Sami was very intelligent and cultural. His creative awareness allowed him to find positions others wouldn’t think of. His technical ability was far superior to most of our players”.

While the mighty Drogs became used to Europe, they could not have predicted their fate in 2008. A first round 3-1 aggregate win over Estonians Levadia Tallinn set up a tasty but tricky tie against Dynamo Kiev. The Ukrainians left Ireland with a 2-1 lead heading into the second leg, while many thought the second leg was a mere formality, Doolin`s men proved otherwise. Ristila and Co battled back twice after going a goal down, with the tie hanging by a knife edge at  2-2, one more goal would have seen the Drogs through. Late efforts by Adam Hughes and Shane Robinson proved in vein, as a determined Drogheda were dumped out by an undeserving Kiev team.

Ristilä later moved into management at Drogheda,  a club that was by now dear to his heart. He had a unique relationship with the supporters and was dearly loved for his efforts on the pitch. Sami took up the role of player/coach alongside Paul Doolin and also became head of youth development at the club.

Declan O`Brien played with Ristilä during the Drogs famous European adventure. O’Brien – who himself made a mark in Europe last season as he helped St Patricks Athletic to the brink of the Europa League group stages – had nothing but admiration for Ristila .”Sami is a top quality player, he is definitely one of the finest ever to have played in the League Of Ireland. His work rate is what impresses me most”.

January 2009 marked the end of an era for Ristilä. After four years of service in his adopted home it was time for him to head back to his native Finland and once again pull on the Haka jersey.The team were flying high by May, standing proudly on top of the table but as fortunes dipped legendary Haka Goalkeeper and then manager Olli Huttunen was sacked.  Sami assumed the role as player/coach on September 7 and guided the nine time champions to a sixth placed finish.

The Veikkausliiga currently sits in 29th position in the Uefa ranking of leagues, one place ahead of the League of Ireland. Ristila maintains that Finnish clubs are more financially viable than their Irish counterparts, although they boast less media coverage. While the Veikkausliiga does manage to gather larger attendances, Ristilä proclaims “ football in Finland is played at a slower pace but technically its superior to what is on offer in Ireland. However in terms of the quality of the player, I believe it is equal”.

The two time capped Finnish international may soon hang his boots up as injury limits his playing time. Nonetheless he will be looking to guide the nine time league champions to a better finish in 2010.

His time in Ireland will never be forgotten. On a personal level I have witnessed four Scandinavians grace the League Of Ireland. The others include Norwegian Glen Atle Larsen (Ex St Pats and Kongsvinger), Finnish goalkeeper Miiko Vilmunen who Drogheda also signed from Haka  and Swedish shot stopper Ola Tidman who represented Derry City.

This trio of Scandinavians had a forgetful time in Ireland, although Vilmunen enjoyed a rare moment of glory by saving two penalties in the Setanta Cup Final, whereas Ristilä is one of the finest foreign players ever to have graced the league. McCadden declared that “Sami was the most successful to have ever graced our league. It is difficult for technical players to settle in here but he adapted well and had no problems”.

Drogheda fans would long to one day see the current Haka manager take the reigns at United Park. This is a view envisaged by lifelong Drogs fan Martin Boland (63) “Sami worked his socks off for this club. Not many fans would know but he also did his fair share of work behind the scenes. Wherever his managerial career will take him, it will certainly be bright. There would be nobody I would rather see in charge of our great club than the great man himself”.

NFN has been pondering and wondering and thought about writing a match report on Finland v Malta, but nobody – absolutely nobody – has seen that match, so here is Glenn’s weekend roundup with highlights links instead.

It was a good weekend for the Danes but an agonising one for their Norwegian counterparts, one of whom lost the first major final of the season.

Nicklas Bendtner scored for the second consecutive game running as Arsenal beat Stoke City 3-1 at the Britannia stadium. Bendtner slotted the ball home past fellow Dane Thomas Sorensen to level things up as the Gunners fell behind early. Sorensen kept Stoke into the game until their resistance was shattered late on in a game that will be remembered for a horrific injury that broke the legs of Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey. The look of shock on the faces of Bendtner and his team mates said it all. But the Danish striker was very upset after the match “my goal and the win doesnt matter. Aaron is one of my best friends and we will go on and win the title for him”.

Dennis Rommedahl capped off a resounding four nil win for Ajax over Fc Utrecht. The Dane grabbed the last goal as the hosts ran riot.

Jon Dahl Tomasson scored the second goal as Feyenoord secured a late win at Groningen. Fredrik Stenman was not content with his goal last week an sought to add another however the defender was thwarted by the Rotterdam side as he and his team mates battled back from two goals down. Swede Andreas Granqvist levelled matters in the dying minutes, he thought he had earned a draw but Ron Vlaar prodded the ball over the line to secure a win for Mario Been`s side.

Simon Kjaer featured as Palermo earned a two nil win away to Juventus. The suprise result sees the Dane`s side climb above the Old Lady and into 4th place.

Kasper Schmeichel kept a clean sheet as his Notts County side mauled Hereford United to earn a five nil win under new  manager Steve Cotterill .

Brian Jensen did his best as Burnley tried in vain to beat a Portsmouth side that has now entered administration. The Danish stopper had his blushes saved early on as an own goal that nutmegged him was chalked off. In a very eventful game Jensen“s long punt forward was latched onto by Martin Paterson who added a delightful finish to put the score at one all, after Portsmouth went ahead through Frederic Piquionne. Jensen made some fine saves including a penalty from Jamie O`Hara. However he could not keep out a second penalty from Hassan Yebda, which earned Portsmouth a 2-1 win.

Mads Junker opened the scoring as Roda JC earned a crucial away win over struggling ADO Den Haag on Friday Night. The Kerkrade side grabbed a last ditch winner which pushes them to within four points of a Europa League place. The Dane took his tally to eleven for the season with this strike.

Sebastian Larsson crashed a free kick off the bar but luckily for the Swede his Birmingham City side still manage to run out one nil winners over Wigan Athletic. Last time these sides met back in December the Swede bagged two goals as his side earned a hard fought 3-2 win ovwer Roberto Martinez`s men. This match will be remembered for an odd injury to the linesman, Liam Ridgewell had made a tackle on James McCarthy at the corner flag and knocked the corner flag into the face of the official who was cut open by the incident. The linesman was not able to continue his duties at St Andrews.

PSV Eindhoven ran out 5-1 winners at home to RKC Waalwijk. Many would predict that Swedish star Ola Toivonen would have been on the scoresheet but after finding the net against Hamburg on Thursday, he could not add a further strike. Their midweek Europa League exit has not deterred their title push.

Jussi Jaaskelainen stood firm in goal to earn his side a vital one nil win at home to Wolves. Bolton achieved only there second victory under Owen Coyle. Johan Elmander was unlucky not to score as he had three chances but was thwarted by the Wolves keeper, but that goal he craves so badly eludes him for another week. A bit of luck that saw David Jones crash his free off Jaaskelainen`s post also aided the Trotters win.

Sami Hyypia`s Bayer Leverkusen were left frustrated after drawing nil all with Cologne. However the result leaves the Finn`s side 24 games unbeaten as they moved one point clear at the top of the table on Saturday. There stay at the summit was cut short as Bayern Munich`s beat Hamburg one nil on Sunday to regain top spot.

Aron Gunnarsson was in the thick of the action as Coventry City earned a 2-1 win over Scunthorpe United at the Ricoh Arena. The Icelandic star forced Joe Murphy into a spectacular save from one of his early efforts. Gunnarsson also saw another effort go wide before he was hauled down on the edge of the area. From the resulting free kick his team mate Sammy Clingan fired home what proved to be the winner.

Gylfi Sigurdsson was inspirational as Reading tore into Sheffield Wednesday at the Madjeski, Winning five nil. Last time the Owls visited Berkshire they were on the wrong end of a six nil thrashing. The excellent Sigurdsson created four chances in the first half and played his part as the Royals went in two nil up at the interval. He was also a key figure in the second half before been subbed with ten minutes remaining. The Icelander is certainly on the road to bigger and better things, a fact buoyed by his late winner against West Brom in midweek. Manager Brian McDermott was full of praise for his team “That was a really big game and i am delighted that we got the points in the way that we did. It is a marvellous result for this club”.

Icelandic Defender Eggert Jonsson grabbed the only goal as Hearts earned a one nil win away to Aberdeen. And what a goal it was as the versatile star slammed home a bicycle kick. Afterwards he labelled it “my best goal ever”. He further added that “I`ve probably done it a few times in training but it was just one of those things,the ball was up in the air and i`ve hit it ,i was so glad to see it go in”.

Thomas Rogne was hauled off with a injury after only a half an hour of a tense Old Firm Derby. The Norwegian will be no doubt frustrated as Rangers Grabbed a last ditch goal to secure a one nil win, bragging rights and the SPL title as Celtic now have a mountain to climb. Dane Morten Rasmussen was primed to come on as a sub but the sending off of Scott Brown changed that as Celtic manager Tony Mowbray was forced to reshuffle his midfield.

John Carew was sprung from the bench to be Aston Villa`s saviour but the big Norwegian watched on in agony as his side went down 2-1 to Manchester United in the Carling Cup final at Wembley.

Brede Hangeland was the only Scandinavian who started for Fulham as they played out a nil all draw with Sunderland. The draw sees the Cottagers unbeaten in eight games, including a one all draw away to Shakhtar Donetsk on Thursday in the Europa League, where the Norwegian bagged his sides goal.

John Arne Riise`s Roma side threw away a two nil lead at Napoli, who forced a draw with a last minute penalty. The former Liverpool man will be frustrated as it ended his sides seven match winning run. It also adds further misery after a shocking midweek exit in the Europa League at the hands of Panathinaikos.

Morten Gamst Pedersen battled valiantly to Save Blackburn but they fell to a 2-1 away defeat to Liverpool in a very physical game. The former Tromso star swung in a dangerous free kick in the last minute which was latched on to by Christopher Samba but he could not beat Pepe Reina.

The NFN transfer news column returns afresh with a new title and ever improved content. Well that’s at least what evil marketing men and women want you to believe with these kinds of blatant attempts at re-branding. In truth, the Round-up will be exactly as inefficient, lazy and crass as the Weekly was in providing news, gossip, outright lies and stuff people called ‘Gaz’ or ‘Bez’ confide to the Round-up at the pub after last orders on Saturdays. In short, ‘a rose by any other name’ and so on an so forth.

So here we go then. While youth has been all the rage in Veikkausliiga for years, the 2010 season is defined by nothing if not by the golden oldies, the thirty-somethings, the seasoned professionals who were already wrestling with wolves and ploughing fields swarming with adders while the rest of use were still speaking in incoherent monosyllables and picking raisins off buns (because raisin are yuck!). You might think that people who have earned a good living and played at some of the biggest stadiums on the planet would, at 30 plus, rather start enjoying a well-earned early retirement (somewhere where the average temperature is over 1,9 degrees Celsius) than trample in slush and mud before a handful of spectators in the middle of October. To the delight of Veikkausliiga fans, these people are made from harder stuff than the Round-up. Now that Jonatan Johansson and Toni Kuivasto are back, the average age of Veikkausliiga players has sky-rocketed and the Round-up thinks it’s about bloody time. The kids are definitely all right but you cannot underrate experience: Jari Litmanen, Johansson, Aki Riihilahti, Janne Saarinen and Kuivasto, total age 363, total international appearances 1029, will rule Veikkausliiga next season.

Lets move on to the transfer then. As everyone must know by now, TPS pulled the biggest coup of the season by signing Johansson on a one-year contract. The 34-year-old Finnish international of 101 appearances and 22 goals returns to Turku after fourteen years spent in Estonia, Scotland, England and Sweden. Johansson’s return will give Veikkausliiga in general and TPS’s inexperienced squad in particular a needed boost. TPS also snapped up Toni Kolehmainen, formerly of AZ Alkmaar and AC Oulu, who signed a two-year deal with last season’s bronze medallists. Kolehmainen will have big shoes to fill in the TPS midfield and, with this in mind, the Round-up recommends an extended pie and beef-cake diet to the undoubtedly talented but ever so slight U21 regular.

Meanwhile, FC Sedu have been busy making short-term plans for an uncertain future. Toni Kuivasto signed a one-year deal (having spent a decade in Norway and Sweden) as did Jukka Santala, formerly of HJK, Glasgow Rangers and FC Nordsjælland. The returnee duo should be able to strengthen Haka’s unimpressive squad considerably but since we are talking about a club where the doors are swinging as frequently as in a busy Helsinki night club, who knows what will happen.

While HJK have been away building up Veikkausliiga’s international reputation (enjoying modest success in Moscow and beating AIK 2-1 in Seinäjoki), the personnel has changed quite a bit at Finnair Stadium. Paulus Roiha, Jukka Sauso and Mikko Hauhia have left (to Åtvidaberg, Jönköpings Södra and Akademisk Boldklub respectively) and since no new signings have been made, it actually might be the case that HJK fans will see more home-grown products in action next season. Well, kicking balls to the stands at half-times at least.

Former HJK favourite Iiro Aalto, who is also the holder of one of the poorest scoring records in Veikkausliiga history, left TPS for his home town club Rauman Pallo-Iirot (currently playing in the second division). Apparently, at 32, the full back wants to combine football with studying which is completely understandable. However, the Round-up will, for some inexplicable reason, actually miss seeing Iiro and his swaying gait on the Veikkausliiga greens.

Oh, and speaking of green, TamU were utterly destroyed by Örebro despite fielding a strong starting eleven. The Round-up knows that the Swedes are a few weeks away from their season kick-off and all that, but to get trashed 6-0 is just embarrassing (How does HJK’s defeat of the reigning Allsvenskan champions look to the cynics now?).

Meanwhile, VPS have been busy in the transfer market. The Vaasa club signed former FC Inter forward Valtter Laaksonen from Sogndal and Kwon Jung-Hyuk. The former will replace Henri Sillanpää who left for GAIS. The South-Korean is remembered from RoPS where he got used to conceding goals by the bucketful last season, usually for no fault of his own though. VPS also signed someone called Greg Eckhardt from some obscure university team from the US of A. Might sound a bit dodgy but apparently the 21-year-old has captained four different youth national teams. The Round-up is convinced that the American must be quite good then. Having been the captain for the duration of fifteen minutes in a playground match at the age of twelve, the Round-up knows how special you have to be in order to be selected a captain.

Atalanta also know when they come across a good player and so Henri Toivomäki will be spending the spring in Bergamo. The 18-year-old FC Lahti full back signed a six-month loan deal with the Serie A club and will be playing in their Primavera squad (who are apparently pretty decent). And nifty lower-division goal-getter Pekka Sihvola will finally get his big break in Veikkausliiga at Lahti, as will former Klubi 04 midfielder Janne Törmänen.

That’s your lot then. Feel free to add any mouth-watering gossip or fresh tittle-tattle below.

Transfers:

Iiro Aalto

From: TPS; To: Rauman Pallo-Iirot; 2009: 23/0; Total: 200/1; Position: D; Date of birth: 19/7/77

Greg Eckhardt

From: Clemson Tigers; To: VPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 0/0; Position: D; Date of birth: 1/7/89

Mikko Hauhia

From: HJK; To: Akademisk Boldklub; 2009: 25/0; Total: 158/3; Position: D; Date of birth: 3/9/84

Jonatan Johansson

From: St. Johnstone; To: TPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 32/6; Position: F; Date of birth: 16/8/75

Toni Kolehmainen

From: AC Oulu; To: TPS; 2009: 5/1; Total: 5/1; Position: M; Date of birth: 1/1/90

Toni Kuivasto

From: Djurgårdens IF; To: FC Haka; 2009: 0/0; Total: 173/9; Position: D; Date of birth: 31/12/75

Kwon Jung-Hyuk

From: RoPS; To: VPS; 2009: 20/0; Total: 20/0; Position: G; Date of birth: 8/2/78

Valtter Laaksonen

From: Sogndal; To: VPS; 2009: 0/0; Total: 54/13; Position: F; Date of birth: 3/5/84

Paulus Roiha

From: HJK; To: Åtvidaberg; 2009: 8/0; Total: 93/40; Position: F; Date of birth: 3/8/80

Jukka Santala

From: Mjällby AIF; To: FC Haka; 2009: 0/0; Total: 21/3; Position: F; Date of birth: 10/4/85

Jukka Sauso

From: HJK; To: Jönköpings Södra; 2009: 0/0; Total: 126/4; Position: D; Date of birth: 20/6/82

Pekka Sihvola

From: FC Hämeenlinna; To: FC Lahti; 2009: 0/0; Total: 4/0; Position: F; Date of birth: 22/4/84

Henri Sillanpää

From: VPS; To: GAIS; 2009: 21/0; Total: 221/0; Position: G; Date of birth: 4/6/79

Janne Törmänen

From: Klubi 04; To: FC Lahti; 2009: 0/0; Total: 0/0; Position: M; Date of birth: 29/1/89

It has not been a great weekend for Scandinavian players on the continent. Many were absent, failed to score, got thrashed and were downright unlucky.

Nicklas Bendtner scored his first goal since returning from a groin injury as Arsenal made hard work over what should have been a relatively easy win. The Dane scored as the Gunners beat Sunderland 2-0. Manager Arsene Wenger was full of praise for the star who has recovered after a hernia operation but claimed he is different to both Wayne Rooney and Didier Drogba “Nicklas is 21 and has different qualities. He is very strong, tall and intelligent. He can improve a lot but how much he will improve is down to how hard he will work”.

Fellow Danish star Peter Lovenkrands  opened the scoring for Newcastle in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Preston North End. Jon Dahl Tomasson thought he had given Feyenoord the points at home to ADO Den Haag but a late equaliser secured a two all draw for the struggling outfit.

Casper Ankergren played his part as Leeds grabbed a vital last minute equaliser against Brighton. The Elland Road side have been struggling as of late after their impressive FA Cup run. Fellow Danish goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel suffered the same fate as his Notts County side scored an equaliser at the death to earn a draw with Aldershot.

Brian Jensen picked the ball out of his net five times as Aston Villa ran rampant over the Dane and his visiting Burnley team mates. Relegation looms for the Clarets who have been shaken since the departure of manager Owen Coyle to Bolton Wanderers.

Simon Poulsen grabbed a rare goal as his AZ Alkmaar side surrendered a 3-1 lead at Venlo. The match finished three all. Simon Kjaer played his part as Palermo eased to a 3-1 win over the fallen ginats of Italian football Lazio. The win sees the Dane`s side remain unbeaten at home as they strive towards a Champions League place.

Shefki Kuqi scored a crucial winner for Swansea City away to Derby County. The Finn scored the only goal of the game which lifts Swansea to 4th place. Gylfi Sigurdsson made an eagerly awaited turn to the Reading side but only as a sub. The Iceland star was helpless to prevent his side from going down 2-0 away to Blackpool. Captain Ivar Ingimarsson was a notable absentee for the Royals.

Fellow Icelander Kari Árnason will be a relieved man as his struggling Plymouth Argyle side fought back to earn a draw with Leicester City. Árnason  scored an absolute howler of an own goal which had put the Foxes in the driving seat. Heidar Helguson was substituted after a disappointing showing as Watford grabbed a 2-2 draw away to Scunthorpe United.

Emil Hallfredsson was absent but that did not deter his Barnsley side from continuing their surge up the table. The Oakwell side earned a 2-0 away win over Cardiff City.

Poor old Herman Hreidarsson. You think his crisis-hit Portsmouth side are on the verge of beating Stoke, but then it all falls apart. A last minute goal from Salif Diao added to the woes of the Fratton Park side.
Eidur Gudjohnsen sat on the bench again as Spurs earned a 3-0 win away at Wigan Athletic. The Iceland star may be thinking he should have kept his word and moved to West Ham after all as he would get more game time there.

Thomas Rogne made his first start for Celtic, who ran out 1-0 winners over Dundee United. Robbie Keane got the only goal as Morten Rasmussen remained stuck on the bench for the ninety minutes. Mowbray was full of praise for Rogne and his defensive partner Josh Thompson after the match “Both lads were excellent. We bought them for the future but they more than proved their worth today”.

Morten Gamst Pedersen scored a throw in for Blackburn Rovers but it was soon ruled out. Pedersen was influential as his side thrashed arch rivals Bolton Wanderers 3-0 at Ewood Park. Pedersen also unselfishly assisted Kalinic for his sides first goal. Finnish keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen did his best to keep the score to a minimum but was not helped by a faltering Bolton defence.

Thorstein Helstad managed a smile as his Le Mans side secured a vital 3-1 away win over relegation rivals Boulogne. The Norwegian striker failed to get on the scoresheet.

AS Roma got back to winning ways with a 1-0 win over Catania. John Arne Riise`s side lost for the first time in 21 matches on Thursday, going down 3-2 to Panathinaikos. However this win sees the Giallorossi move to within five points of first placed Inter Milan.

Jonas Olsson was far from convincing as West Brom went down 2-1 at the hands of Bristol City. The Swede was inconsistent throughout, as his marker easily got away from him to score Bristol`s first at Ashton Gate.
Fellow Swede Ola Toivonen also had a disappointing weekend as his PSV side played out a one all draw with Sparta Rotterdam. The draw leaves the Eindhoven outfit one point ahead at the top of the Eredivisie.

Sami Hyypia’s Leverkusen side regained their place at the summit of the Bundesliga with a 2-2  draw at Werder Bremen. The Finn’s form this year has shown what Liverpool are missing, indeed the English side probably could not have made a bigger blunder in the shake up of their back line than letting Hyypia leave.

Petteri Tyni’s Tampere football videos are a real poke in the eye for people who moan about new media killing journalism. The local press in Tampere doesn’t have the capability or will to provide this kind of coverage of lower division football, and Petteri fills the gap by filming Ilves, TPV and occasionally TamU matches and posting the videos on his blog, sometimes with a heavy soundtrack.

His true  love is TKT, Tampereen Kisatoverit. One of the many leftist clubs to have been founded in Finland in the 20s, they began in the Tampere suburb of Petsamo, but have followed the trends of gentrification and their centre of gravity is now in the working class suburb of Hervanta. Their first team is resolutely lower division, with a season in Kakkonen in 2006 being a recent highlight for them.

For clubs like this the Finnish Cup is a lifeline, a chance for a bit of extra income and a game against a big club, and TKT really take it very seriously indeed. Last year I travelled with them to Tervakoski for a second round game against PATO. They controlled that game until the last ten minutes, conceding a 2-0 lead and then losing on penalties, but this time I chickened out of heading to Valkeakoski to see them take on Koskenpojat as the weather was pretty chilly. Besides, I knew there’d be a video from Petteri, so the risk of missing something special was quite small. The second goal from Matias Karti is the pick of the bunch here:

TAMPERE United fans will be represented next week at a reception at the European parliament. The reception, organised by supporter’s advocacy group Supporter’s Direct, is intended to “celebrate football, and in particular the important role of supporters in ownership and governance of clubs.”

Supporter’s Direct is a British organisation established to encourage the spread of Trusts dedicated to encouraging good governance of football clubs by increasing supporter representation. Over 100 trusts have been established in Britain, and SD now has a dedicated project worker to encourage similar organisations in Europe too.

Tampere United fans established their own trust (Finnish acronym TUK) last autumn in response to the club’s growing financial difficulties. They quickly established a sizeable membership and raised thousands of euros in order to participate in the club’s share issue, as well as forging links with Supporter’s Direct, who will fund Trust director Ville Halmes’ trip to the Brussels reception.

Supporter’s representatives from Belgium, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom and Israel will be present, along with representatives from UEFA and members of the Friends of Football group of MEPs.

“The European context is quite important,” says Halmes. “Through working with Supporter’s Direct we’ve become aware that there is a growing feeling that some of the models of football financing have not worked properly, particularly in the United Kingdom, and that a less leveraged football economy is needed. In Finland the sums are different, of course, but we think fans can play a role in safeguarding football here too.”

While many of Supporter’s Direct’s member groups have faced conflict with their clubs, the Tampere fans have been warmly welcomed by club management. Some Manchester United fans even formed a new team, FC United of Manchester, when their relationship with the club broke down in the wake of Malcolm Glazer’s leveraged buy-out of the club, but co-operation is the order of the day for TUK.

“We just want to play a part to ensure our club survives,” continues the Tampere-born IR student. “TamU have had great success, they’ve made the club known on a European level, and we believe the Tampere community wants the club to continue to do that. Hopefully we can harness this goodwill and ensure the club can return to European competition again soon.”

As the football season approaches, TUK is planning a variety of initiatives including cinema screenings and benefit nights. The funds raised will help them to increase their shareholding, but more importantly they will bring a little bit of football culture to Tampere, which has traditionally been seen purely as an ice hockey town.

“Football is popular throughout the world, and the culture surrounding the sport is incredibly rich,” explains Halmes. “We want to encourage those with an interest in this culture to participate in TamU, as it is their club too – football is not just something that happens on the telly.”

Swedish players renewed their credibility this weekend after weeks of relative frustration. While five Swedes there way onto scoresheets, Johan Elmander`s drought continued. The forward has only scored nine goals since arriving at Bolton in June 2008, and faced a good deal of criticism from the British press as a result.

Herman Hreidarsson managed a smile at long last as his Portsmouth side trounced local rivals Southampton 4-1 away from home.

Reading and West Brom must play each other again after a captivating two all draw at the Madjeski stadium. Reading, who where still missing their FA Cup hero Gylfi Sigurdsson, stole the lead after nine seconds of play. The experience of Icelandic duo Ivar Ingimarsson and Brynjar Gunnarsson aided the Berkshire side in this tense battle as both teams were reduced to ten men, before Olsson’s Baggies grabbed an equaliser at the death.

Bolton Wanderers and Tottenham must also square off again to see who will advance. The match finished 1-1 and many Spurs fans will feel aggrieved after Jussi Jaaskelainen saved a poor penalty from Tom Huddlestone which would have put them through. After the match Bolton captain Kevin Davies jumped to the defence of misfiring striker partner Elmander stating “Johan`s work rate is unbelievable. He works his socks off and we are all behind him and we all believe in him because he does a great job for the side and we all appreciate that”. Manager Owen Coyle was also keen to talk up the Swede and proclaimed “I thought he was outstanding with his level of performance”. Elmander will be hoping he can strike it lucky when the Wanderers entertain Wigan Athletic in midweek.

John Carew continued his return from injury, replacing Emile Heskey in Aston Villa`s two all draw at Crystal Palace. The Norwegian saw two shots thwarted by Palace goalkeeper Julian Speroni. Villa forced a replay with a late goal from a corner , that should not have been given.  Carew will be hoping to reinvigorate himself ahead of  testing times for the Birmingham club , with a league cup final against Manchester United looming.

Thomas Sorensen kept moneybags Man City at bay and ensured his Stoke side earned a replay after a credible one all draw at Eastlands. Stoke will prove a stern test for Roberto Mancini`s men when they renew adversaries at one of the hardest grounds to visit in England, the Britannia stadium.

Sebastian Larsson featured as Birmingham City grabbed a late winner to beat Derby County 2-1 and advance to the quarter finals of the prestigious cup competition. Despite Larsson producing one of hi finer performances of late, he will still be unhappy at been subbed yet again.

Fulham crushed Notts County 4nil to reach the quarter final stage in what was County`s first match post Sven Goran Eriksson. David Elm continued his fine form of late, providing a flick that assisted Bobby Zamora`s second goal. The Cottagers had two Scandinavians starting and a further three on the bench. Danish keeper Kasper Schmeichel was the unlucky man tasked with keeping the score down.

In League one Casper Ankergren`s Leeds United side fought valiantly to rescue a point at Leyton Orient.  Having conceded a late goal the Dane`s team battled hard and it paid off as a last minute equaliser came in the form of an own goal.

Leon Andreasen endured a nightmare as Hannover 96 went down 5-1 at home to Werder Bremen. As if the embarrassment wasn’t enough, the Norwegian had to bow his head even further after sticking the ball in his own net.

Swedish striker Marcus Berg found his shooting boots again. He bagged the first goal but  Ruud Van Nistelrooy stole the show as Hamburg  eased to a 3-1 away win at Stuttgart.  `

Fellow Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic also managed to notch a goal but he was unable to prevent his Barcelona side from slipping to their first defeat of the season, as the Catalan giants went down 2-1 at Athletico Madrid.

Ola Toivonen joined his fellow countrymen on the scoresheet. The Swede scored the only goal as PSV earned a hard fought victory over Heracles. Toivonen has been a revelation this season.

Elsewhere in Holland, Swedish defenders Fredrik Stenman and Andreas Granqvist both scored as Groningen grinded out a 2-1 home victory over struggling RKC Waalwijk.

Sami Hyypia and His Leverkusen side ran out 2-1 winners at Wolfsburg, the victory was enough to put the Finn`s side back on top .

John Arne Riise sealed a 4-1  for Roma over Palermo with a fine strike. Riise`s form this season has been a far cry from that of last year and he is a perfect fit in a spirited Roma side. Riise believes that his efforts this season has seen fans of the Giallorossi renew the faith they originally showed in him ,  “I always give my all and the fans have recognised this “.

Thomas Rogne did not make his Celtic debut against Aberdeen. The Norwegian was expected to debut after a fine performance against Hearts in midweek. Celtic threw away a 4-2 lead in a pulsating tie that finished 4 all. Morten Rasmussen came on as a sub but failed to get on the score sheet.A three nil victory for Rangers on Sunday over Hibernian saw them extend the gap over Celtic at the top to ten points.

Dennis Rommedahl scored the first goal that set Ajax on course for a two nil away win at Heerenveen. Norwegian midfielder Christian Grindheim was sent off for the hosts and the Amsterdam  side sealed tthe win late on.

Rasmus Elm proved he too can score goals just like his brother David, who scored in midweek for Fulham. Rasmus scored a stunning free kick from 25 yards out to secure a 2-0 win for reigning Dutch champions AZ Alkmaar over Roda Jc.

Daniel Braaten bagged a late equaliser for Toulouse as they stumbled to a one all draw with Lorient.

Kalju came to Valkeakoski last week for a pre-season friendly. After conceding in the first minute they fought back tenaciously against a young Haka side to secure a 1-1 draw. The game wasn’t that interesting, as the players didn’t move that quickly in the -10 frost, but Kalju’s colourful and sponsor-laden bus provided a garish backdrop at the inaptly named Sahara field.

The Finnish Cup gets started early this year, and that means games played indoors. The first round threw up a clash between brash upcoming Töölön Taisto, formed in 2003, and traditional Helsinki side Malmin Pallo Seura, who started life in 1948. MPS play in Kolmonen (the Third Division), while Taisto are currently in Vitonen (the Fifth), after two successive promotions. Click photos to enlarge and start slide show.

Töölön Taisto's coach inspired by Guardiola. Photo by Ville Hyhkö.

The game was played at Tali, Helsinki’s main indoor football venue, and Taisto were clearly taking things very seriously indeed.

Töölön Taisto attack the MPS goal in their Finnish Cup First round tie. Photo by Ville Hyhkö.

Töölön Taisto defend their goal in numbers. Photo by Ville Hyhkö.

“We’re a young club trying to do all the things way better than Finnish clubs have used to do,” says Taisto GM Lauri Kervinen. “Although we currently play in the fifth division, we have noisy supporters, a fanshop in the internet, web-tv and probably the coolest jerseys in Finnish football, for example. For the next season we are planning to advertise our home games for the public, to arrange an over-seas training camp and to start own junior teams. Our motto is to do small things as well as we can on the field but also outside the field, and hope that they will lead us to a brighter future.”

Töölön Taisto fans at their first round cup tie with MPS. Photo by Ville Hyhkö.

Töölön Taisto challenge for the ball against MPS. Photo bt Ville Hyhkö.

After a close-run 5-0 defeat, Taisto went over to thank their supporters. Photo by Ville Hyhkö.

Marco Casagrande, the CEO of TPS, was delighted with the club’s capture of Finland international Jonatan Johansson. He spoke to NFN after Johansson’s introduction to the media, revealing that TPS are still looking for new signings and that a contract extension is in the making for goalkeeper Jukka Lehtovaara.

“The four attacking players have now been secured, now we are looking to reinforce our bottom six with two or three players”, Casagrande said. “We are looking for a defensive midfielder and a left or central defender”, he continued.

“But it is also down to (head coach Marko) Rajamäki’s assessment of how much responsibility our youngsters can be given”, Casagrande said, naming the likes of Kalle Mäkinen.

No trialists are currently about to join the club, but TPS are keeping their eyes open and staying patient.

“There are lots of players unattached right now. There is no panic, given that we have already build a backbone for the team”, Casagrande argues.

He does admit, however, that there is a slight lack of depth in the squad.

“Our starting XI is as good as last year, maybe even better in some areas”, Casagrande proclaims. “But we are a bit short of players”.

There have been rumours that TPS would be tightening the belt financially, but Casagrande claims money will not be an issue when building the team.

“The budget is tight, but we are operating within the frames set. Even if we sign two or three new players. Financial matters will not affect our competitiveness.”

“We are also developing our relationship with Fulham”, Casagrande says.

One of the hot potatoes concerning TPS is the situation of their star goalkeeper Jukka Lehtovaara, who did not move out during the January transfer window. Casagrande says he is unlikely to move to another Nordic country either, even though the Nordic window is until the end of March. Furthermore, TPS are offering the young keeper a new contract that would extend his stay beyond 2010 – if he is not sold.

“It is likely that Jukka will stay until the summer, at least. He could well stay for the whole season for that matter, and we are hoping to sign a contract extension with him”, Casagrande tells NFN.

See also:

Jonatan Johansson returns to TPS
Johansson pleased with Euro 2010 qualification draw