I went to the press conference at the Finnish FA yesterday, and it was pretty interesting. This is the first chunk of transcript, much of which wasn’t reported in the Finnish press today. I’ll write up the rest – detailing the Belgium match and Lauri Dalla Valle – tonight or tomorrow. Apologies for the delay.

Kimmo J Lipponen starts things off

You have heard rumours and seen stories that Mr Baxter has been associated with Celtic Football Club, already in the late spring and in June. From the perspective of the Football Association of Finland nothing has changed in our stance, it is still valid today and it will still be valid in the future, there is no possibility for our head coach to be employed on a part-time basis, for any clubs or other organisations.

And that part is very, very clear. We have had discussions, I have had discussions twice with Peter Lawwel at Celtic, very briefly in June, talking about the situation and on a more general level, he was asking if there was a possibility to have some kind of general memorandum of understanding between Celtic and the FA, including Mr Baxter and other areas of co-operation. We said no. The second time was today, on the same topic, and I wanted to be absolutely clear with Celtic and with the media, that there was no employment possibilities there.

Q: Mr Baxter, what’s your message to Finnish football fans?

Well, I think my attitude has not changed at all. I’ve purposely not said anything, to the press from June to now, because I didn’t want to drive any sort of misconception. Anyone that I’ve spoken to I’ve told them exactly the same – I will not do anything to compromise my job as the national coach. I am 100% committed to my job as national coach. I’m sure that Kimmo could tell you about other clubs that have asked could he do a coaching job here or there, and in every case, the only criteria for me, is ‘does that affect my job?’. Yeah, I’ve been in the Faroe Islands, I’ve been all over the place, doing work for the FA or otherwise, and in every case, the question is ‘is it affecting his job?’. And if not, okay you can do it. So I’m 100% committed, and I think, and I hope that I’ve shown that over the last two and a half years, I hope I will continue to show that, but certainly that’s the message I would like to give, that nothing has changed in terms of that. Nothing has changed in terms of my commitment, absolutely.

Mr Baxter, how is it possible that there were so different kind of quotes from you in the Scottish media yesterday, and then in the statement?

In my career I’ve never, until this morning, received an apology from a journalist the day after an article was written, but while I was driving from the airport to the Finnish FA, I received an apology from the Scottish journalist who wrote the article, apologising for the crossed lines. Well you’re all journalists and you can read from that what you want. If you read that article, you’ll see that the quotes they’ve used don’t speak about anything official, they don’t speak about appointments. The whole conception of me helping Celtic is based upon someone saying appointment. Now I’ve never said that, and I’ve never defended that, for me it has been about professional courtesy. If I was to tell you how many times AIK in Stockholm had called me in the last two and a half years, maybe you’d be saying ‘how could he keep his focus on the job in Finland’, you know. If I told you about how many times the Japanese club that I worked for, the president, had asked me about players, as a professional courtesy, and that’s what I said to Celtic, I would be willing to help in that respect.

There were quotes, not about a role, or a contract, but being able to help Celtic and job discussions and that kind of stuff – were the quotes correct?

One of the biggest problems, and one of the annoying things, for me, is that there have been newspapers that have said that I’m lying. That doesn’t go well with me. Because if one of you guys had said in the press, ‘Stuart Baxter’s lying’, that would be the last time I’d speak to you. Now it does not sit well with me. Now one of the problems that we’ve had, is that you guys have been writing articles based on other articles, and …… so when you write your articles, you’ve got to think well, what is a role? What is a role? Stuart has a role in Celtic, well, what is a role, you know? I don’t think that answering the telephone is having a role. Now, of course, if the way the Scottish media has driven it – and I think, at some stage, my agent said that the Scottish media are blocking any sort of co-operation between the Finnish FA and Celtic – what you don’t do, if you start describing it in these sensationalist terms, then it won’t be anything. Not even me answering the telephone. I would say that the problem has been that you’ve been writing articles based on other articles, so already there’s been a change, because there wasn’t an appointment, a contract, it was far less than that.

But can I have an answer to my question whether the quotes were correct, in the Evening Times?

I’ll be honest, I haven’t seen them. I’ve only had them read to me. Yet, I would guess, that the apology I received today probably meant that they’d been taken out of context, or twisted to suit a need.

Mr Baxter, how much do you think you will be in contact with the Celtic manager during the season that is about to begin?

I think that I would be a fool if my contact with Celtic over the next few months, was to be more than with any other club, I would be a moron. I don’t think my employer would like it, and I don’t think that my credibility would be served by having extreme co-operation with them. It’ll be normal in terms of I can control it. If it’s a few conversations now and again, then I can control it and I’ll have a few conversations. If I feel it’s becoming a role, then I’ll obviously steer clear. I don’t think I’m unintelligent in that respect, and I don’t think I’m insensitive to the feelings of the people around here.

One of the quotes was that you would be a consultant, in inverted commas. Will you receive any payment from Celtic?

No. And I won’t be a consultant.

So that’s wrong?

Well if you think about…I have to go to my experiences with other clubs. If you think about it this way, Arsene Wenger’s never been a consultant for the Finnish FA, but I’ve called Arsene Wenger. I called him Arsene and I’ve spoken to him about the games. I call him and I ask what do you think about the way the Germans play with their two front players. I’ve never been on the payroll of AIK, despite sending them drills and reports on players. And Manchester United’s chief scout is not on our payroll, but he will be watching the game between for us between England and Hungary, and he won’t be paid. So that’s a professional courtesy, and that sort of thing, is what people have called a role, or a consultancy, and that’s where the problem starts. Because as soon as one person says to you that that’s a role, he’s a consultant, and Stuart Baxter thinks he’s just showing professional courtesy to a fellow coach who’s just starting out in the game, then you have a problem there. Because you guys have got to report on a consultancy, not what I’m calling it, and I think that’s been a problem. It’s been trumped up. And I guessing that as Celtic is sort of big in Scotland, and when the chairman blows his nose its worth three columns in the national papers. That’s how big it is. And I think they – not Celtic, the media – wanted it to be a massive thing. So to answer your question: no there’s no contract, there’s no money, there’s no consultancy, there’s no role, there’s no appointment. What it was was professional courtesy, and I hope I’d show that to all clubs.

The Celtic statement says that Stuart will not take any formal position with Celtic football club, are you taking any informal position there?

Again, you’re into that area of what is an informal position? If I answer the phone once every six months, does that mean I’ve got an informal position? That’s the problem. The problem has been… I mean I sat with Kimmo a week ago, and I said if Neil Lennon calls me I’ll show him the same courtesy that I show to other coaches.

So you’re not going to block his calls?

Well I may be smart over the next few weeks and not have contact….I may be stupid in many ways but I’m not stupid in all ways.

Kimmo, has there been any damage to the trust between Stuart Baxter and the Finnish FA as a result of the Celtic interest?

No, no there hasn’t. We were very unhappy about the mess around this, all the things that have been written in the press about this, nobody likes that as we have other more important things to do than to write press releases on topics which are not true.

A question for Kimmo Lipponen. What are the main reasons why you can’t let your coach be in any kind of position with other clubs in the world?

Lipponen: I think there are a few reasons. First, and most importantly, I think that for any professional job at that level, the focus should be 100% for the task at hand, which is preparing our team for the European Qualification campaign. Then there are other, minor issues around it. Like if you have a head coach heavily involved with other things, it means the corporate sponsorship and partnership issues get very complicated. But mostly I think it’s important that if you have any fulltime position… I could never, for instance, have considered being a consultant for a club, in addition to the job I have now. We have so many important things to do, if we had to spread the attention to ten different tasks.

Baxter: Can I just reflect a bit on the question there… I’m pleased to hear Kimmo say that, because what he’s saying is that the relationship we’ve had over the last two and a half years has been solid. And I know that some people have said that there might be a crack in that relationship. For me there hasn’t been, and I’ve never answered that publicly because I know that as soon as you start….. to quote Oscar Wilde, if the dogs bark at you as you’re walking down the street then you don’t bark back. So I’ve never said anything. We’ve had a very tight relationship. We’ve been sparring before games, before we played Wales we were in the gym…

Lipponen: We have gloves on then, though.

Baxter: And maybe I won’t spar with him for another couple of months because I’m worried about getting my nose broken but, to be serious, I’m pleased to hear that. Because what it means is that we trust your judgement. But it also means that we understand your situation. Because I’ve built up a relationship with the press here that I would not like to be destroyed because we have been dealing with misconceptions. We put out a statement yesterday, we had a conversation with Celtic this morning, not with us shouting and screaming at each other, but we just corrected a misconception. Right up until this morning, there have been misconceptions. When the misconceptions have been written about in Scotland, as if they’re the truth, and you guys have been writing about them as if they’re the truth, and this is the first chance you’ve had to sit in front of me and I can tell you that I’m a hundred percent committed, and have been, to the Finnish FA. If a telephone call to AIK, or to Japan, or to Celtic happens over the next two and a half years, I guarantee you that will not be the reason that we lose a game. The challenges that we face are many, but one of the challenges that Finnish football does not face is my ability to direct my energy into this job. You will not face that, and that is a promise.

One of the many loveable idiosyncrasies of Finnish football is the relaxed attitude to registrations taken by the authorities here. Players can switch clubs with bewildering regularity, via an intricate network of co-operation agreements between clubs at all levels of the game. Promising young defender Johannes Mononen has played for all three of Tampere’s top clubs this season, for instance, while remaining registered to Tampere United. One-game and two-game loans are possible, and can be utterly confusing for the casual observer.

Technically, the co-operation agreement makes the lower-ranked partner the higher club’s reserve side. Then there are bona fide ressies, like Sinimustat (Inter Turku), Pallohonka (FC Honka) and Klubi 04 (HJK), who only or predominantly field players from the parent club’s system. Their goal is to develop players for the first team and occasionally nurse senior players back to fitness, but they lack fans, tradition and experience, and therefore make for an intriguing spectacle.

Take Klubi 04. Containing many of Finland’s brightest young talents (many of them with dual-nationality, like a lot of members of the successful German national team), Klubi 04′s players all yearn to play for HJK. They play some excellent stuff, with the inventive Brazilian-Finn Duarte Tammilehto and Sierra Leonian-Finn David Ramandingaye orchestrating things in the centre of midfield and German-Finn Alexander Ring breaking forward effectively when the opportunity arises. They play an enterprising 4-3-2-1 formation, and their pace troubles the creaking, part-time legs of other Ykkönen teams, but youth cannot overcome everything.

At kickoff Klubi 04 were in the third relegation spot, two points clear of TPV and MP in the bottom two spots, and one point from fourth-bottom FC Hämeenlinna and safety. The tense atmosphere of the relegation battle was always going to be an interesting test for Klubi 04′s youngsters (average age: 19), and so it proved.

When Nikolai Alho was brutally bodychecked by Aku Korhonen in the second half, he seemed to have injured the entire left side of his body, from head to toe. During the lengthy break for treatment several Klubi 04 players gathered round Korhonen as if they wanted to start something that might look like a ‘melee’, but they just weren’t sure how. In the end Valterri Moren shoved him gently in the chest and then backed quickly away when Korhonen made his ‘come on’ gestures. It was sadly disappointing for connoisseurs of on-pitch brawling – a damp squib, men against boys, all mouth and no violent blows to the head.

The goals were another difference in approach. TPV’s all came from set pieces: Juuso Ollikainen poked the ball home in a scrappy goalmouth scramble after a free-kick, Korhonen nodded home a header from a corner, and Tuovinen sent an ugly deflected free-kick looping over Klubi keeper Tomas Karike right at the death. Klubi 04, on the other hand, played inch-perfect counter attacks, with Ring exploiting a gap in the TPV defence via an expert throughball (I think from Tammilehto), and Kosovan-Finn Fisnik Gerxhaliu racing clear of TPV’s defence to slot the ball past Kiljunen 2 minutes later.

This difference in styles can give teams and players a sense of entitlement and moral superiority that sometimes borders on gracelessness. Klubi were clearly the better side, technically speaking, as they built from the back with Karike always looking for his fullback and occasionally punting the ball out of play without undue chastisement from team-mates or coaching staff. They’re learning to play football, and results – while still important – are secondary to that. TPV, on the other hand, were under no illusions that their best chance of retaining possession was to give it to Jarno Eränen, Jussi Kemmo and Antto Hilska, all of whom spend most of their time in the final third of the pitch. The resultant midfield-avoiding punts were predictable, but understandable.

The intriguing contrast of styles was rather overshadowed towards the end, though, when TPV got their late winner. The Klubi 04 players were incensed at the accumulated ankle-taps, shoves and ‘reducers’, as well as the yellow card given to Korhonen for a challenge that, if conducted on a British street, might bring a jail sentence. Captain Tammilehto had to be held back by his midfield partner Ramandingaye as he bellowed his protests at the referee, and several other players in blue and white were also keen to remonstrate at the injustice of it all.

There was a brief and amusing interlude when the TPV sponsors gave awards to Tammilehto and Ramandingaye for their performances, inconveniently interrupting the indignation, and then the cursing and shouting continued on the way to the dressing room. A wheelie bin was knocked over and a local fan was squared up to, but in the end it didn’t really matter. Nobody supports Klubi 04, and nobody cares much about their results beyond the coaches, the players and their families.

TPV have fans in their twilight years who’ve been turning up every week for as long as anyone can remember and consider themselves ‘club men’ in the best sense of the phrase, and a relegation would be distressing for several hundred people involved in and around TPV. For those involved with Klubi 04, on the other hand, continued involvement in the club five years from now would almost certainly represent failure.

They want to move onwards and upwards, and that is indeed the sole purpose of the club – if you’re there it’s because you’re not good enough for proper football. This is why its okay to laugh at their youthful petulance, and why I hope they get relegated. Reserve teams shouldn’t be playing that close to the top level of Finnish football. I loved watching their players and hope their careers progress, but they should do that at proper clubs, not a ghost team without fans, pressure or interest.

TPS will host Welsh side Port Talbot Town in their opening fixture of the UEFA Europa League first qualification round tie. Having recently played four games in nine days, TPS are having injury problems. In Wednesday’s pre-game press conference, head coach Marko Rajamäki revealed five players are ruled out of Thursday’s game.

Captain Jarno Heinikangas is unavailable for selection on Thursday, and his centre-back-in-crime Jaakko Nyberg will take the captain’s armband. Who the four other injured players were, Rajamäki wouldn’t tell.

“I do not really want to talk about injuries anymore. We have a number of absentees, but we can still put together a good team.”

“Anymore” in the comment referred to Rajamäki’s recent outburst in a post-match press conference. In a six-minute monologue, Rajamäki accused the Finnish FA of first promising that the FA would be willing to ease TPS’ burden if there was a congestion of fixtures, but then not delivering on the promise when TPS had four games to play in nine days. In Wednesday’s pre-game conference, Rajamäki wanted to move on instead of repeating his previous outburst.

The TPS coach said he had done his best to scout their Welsh opponent. The job had been difficult, owing to the Welsh off-season.

“I am expecting a very British team. I am sure their game will be physical but fair. Responding to the physical side of the game is the biggest challenge for our young team in this tie.”

Port Talbot Town coach Jones expects a difficult game

Scouting had been somewhat easier for Port Talbot Town manager Mark Jones. Jones said his team had been preparing by watching highlights of TPS’ league games and analysing every goal TPS had scored.

The Blues gaffer also has previous experience of Finnish teams.

“I was managing Carmarthen in 2006 when we played Tampere United (in the Intertoto Cup)”, Jones reminded.

“TamU were really good, and I expect more of the same”, Jones stated.

Finnish and Welsh sides have met on five occasions during the past 12 years, with the Finns (Haka twice, TamU, MYPA and Honka once) always advancing to the next stage. Despite the historical background, Jones said he won’t park the bus.

“We cannot just set our stall out to defend and look for a 0-1, a good team will punish us for that. We have no real star players, but I’m relying on our great work ethic. That is what got us into Europe”, Jones said.

Despite the history, TPS boss Rajamäki refused to be named favourites.

“I do not think we are in a position to claim we are above any other European league”, Rajamäki said.

“This game lasts not 90, but 180 minutes. We will be doing our own thing in the first game and tweak our tactics for the return leg if necessary”, Rajamäki promised.

The Finnish league has made it all the way to the 8th round, which makes us here at the NFN Ivory Tower quite ready and willing to single out some teams for harsh criticism. We could also carve out the positives out of some teams’ performances, but who wants to read good news anyway?

Friday 7 PM

Tampere United (5th) – FC Lahti (12th)

Tampere United had to make a jailbreak on Tuesday because AC/DC invaded their home ground. They had enough T.N.T in them to go 2-0 up at FF Jaro, but were so thunderstruck by their early lead that they had to settle with a 2-2 draw. The Tampere side were shot down in flames by Lahti in the cup a couple of weeks back. However, TamU are on a five match unbeaten league run. Improving FC Lahti can only snatch a draw.

Draw

Saturday 7 PM

AC Oulu (11th) – FC Honka (2nd)

Honka have not been the most prolific side in their recent fixtures. One goal in three games is not quite enough, unless you are happy enough keeping the ball. Honka are quite content with that most of the time. AC Oulu beat Inter away on Monday, so it is about time they return to their usual habit of not scoring. 0-0, says NFN’s highly advanced and fully computerised prediction machine.

Draw

Sunday, 6.30 PM

TPS (6th) – IFK Mariehamn (14th)

TPS’ luck ran out on Tuesday. They finally lost, having already played six games of quite horrible football before that. IFK Mariehamn are quite bad too, so TPS can take three points again and take pride in occupying a European spot even though their football is a huge mess. IFK’s Mikko Paatelainen returns to his former home stadium, which is the most enjoyable event of the night for any TPS fan.

Home win

HJK (1st) – FF Jaro (8th)

Both sides are pretty good, so we here at the Ivory Tower don’t really know how we could mock either side. But everybody hates HJK, so our readers can pick the argument of their choice. Jaro are pretty good at football, just inefficient. So HJK will win the game, and nobody will be happy. Except HJK fans, of course.

Home win

JJK (7th) – FC Inter (13th)

Inter have not scored in two league games and AC Oulu and Tampere United have played them off the pitch tactically. However, Job Dragtsma says there is no reason to change tactics, because they are still creating chances. Having attended both their last league games, we here at the NFN Ivory Tower do not know what the hell he is talking about. Their opponents have easily unwound Inter’s strategy, which might be a good enough reason to tweak tactics just a little bit. Besides, their only real striker is still suspended because of a childish act of frustration in a recent cup game. A little hint to JJK: close them down early and force them into long balls, and the game is in the pocket.

Home win

Monday, 6.30 PM

MYPA (9th) – KuPS (3rd)

MYPA are on a three match unbeaten run. There is not much more to say about them, because they are just boring and uninteresting. KuPS have been very good for some time now, and their surprisingly good league position is fully deserved. MYPA have been quite bad at home, so let’s take the easy way out and go for KuPS.

Away win

Monday, 8.30 PM

VPS (10th) – Haka (4th)

VPS have won once and drawn once after their miserable derby defeat against Jaro. They won KuPS and drew against Honka, so they are seemingly improving. The same cannot be said about Haka, who controlled the game against MYPA last week, but only scored once and in their own end. Well, VPS aren’t that good either, so this is a draw. Surely?

Draw

The HJK that many have been waiting for finally showed up in the Finnish Cup victory over Honka last week. For once HJK had certainly done their tactical homework. During the defeat in Espoo three weeks ago, they could neither contain Honka’s flowing passing game nor find the keys to unlock the stubborn Honka defence. This time, however, HJK took the initiative from the word go, stifled the visitors’ midfield and pretty much passed Honka out of Finnair Stadium.

This was arguably the best HJK for two seasons. The team finally showcased a level of tactical creativity, fluid movement and silky skills to equal the quality of the individual players in the squad. It has been questioned in this blog before why HJK settle for a rigid 4-4-2 when there is so much individual talent, tactical awareness and experience in the squad. Now HJK threw their predictable system out the door and showed some true tactical sophistication.

On the face of it, HJK did few changes. Erfan Zeneli took Danny Hoesen’s place in the opening line-up, playing just off Juho Mäkelä, Tuomas Kansikas replaced Mikko Sumusalo in defence and Sebastian Sorsa took his rightful place on the right side of midfield. The point is not that HJK did anything drastic, it’s the tactical subtleties that took their game to another level.

Perhaps the biggest tactical deficiency of Muurinen’s HJK has been their inability to modify tactics inside a match. This time, though, HJK were intelligent, economic and highly effective in interpreting collectively the requirement of any given situation. In terms of the formation, this meant shifting from the 4-4-1-1 starting formation to a 4-2-1-3 or a regular 4-4-2, depending on the whether they had possession, where the ball was and what was the collective shape of the opposition. HJK also showed excellent attentiveness to the timing of their pressing: when and where to press and when to simply drop deeper and absorb the pressure. This was evident, for instance, when Honka were slow in opening play from the back. HJK pressed higher up the pitch actively which often resulted in HJK getting possession in midfield, with their attacking players already positioned in dangerous areas.

The tactical masterstroke by the HJK coaching staff was to use Zeneli in an all-action role in the ‘hole’. It may strike you as odd to see the phrase tactical masterstorke used in the same sentence with Zeneli, but the diminutive attacking midfielder (often much criticised by yours truly) executed the role to perfection and was the standout man of the match. For long Zeneli has been a frustrating player to watch and, in a way, the epitome of the Finnish youth product: a player with plenty of skill, but with no conception of what to do with it all. But on the evidence of this season in general and the Honka match in particular, at twenty-three, Zeneli seems to have finally started acquiring some vital tactical know-how. When before he always seemed to do the wrong thing at the wrong time, now he didn’t put a foot wrong.

This was Zeneli as you’ve never seen him before. His passing was effective and economic; he often played with one touch and only rarely dwelt on the ball. His movement was timely as he operated between Honka’s midfield an defence with stealth. And to top it all off, he scored a fabulous goal. Zeneli received the ball outside the box, got past Sampo Koskinen with a nice flick and, just as you thought that in a moment the ball boys would be running to get the ball from outside the stadium, Zeneli coolly curved the ball home and made in 3-0. Even though the goal was a brilliant piece of individual skill, in terms of team playing, Zeneli’s best moment came earlier in the second half. He got the ball just inside Honka’s half, patiently drew Rami Hakanpää from his position before releasing Mäkelä free on goal. Too bad the striker was only able to hit side netting after rounding the keeper.

But despite of Zeneli’s attacking brilliance, the most remarkable thing about his performance was the maturity he showed when HJK were without the ball. Whenever Honka had possession, Zeneli dropped deeper to form a compact midfield triangle with Medo and Fowler. This was effectively the missing piece from the tactical puzzle of how to stop Honka from playing. Zeneli’s individual defensive effort was admirable in its own right, but the most important thing was that this manoeuvre gave HJK superior numbers in centre midfield, in Honka’s heartland, which then allowed Medo and Fowler to get closer to the Honka players and get aggressive.

All in all, there were no loose ends in HJK’s squad. Medo put in his finest performance this season, bossing the centre of the park with his physicality and skill. Fowler also had an excellent game, prehaps his best in a HJK shirt. Dawda Bah started resembling the same player he was last season. And Peter Magnusson finally showed what he is made of by back pocketing the petulant Alexander Kokko (who scored two goals in their last outing) comfortably.

Even if the individuals took centre stage, HJK’s new look was due to pragmatic preparation and well-organised team playing. First and foremost, HJK were flawless as a defensive unit. And because defensive positioning is the first step to successful attacking, this allowed HJK’s attacking qualities to blossom when they were in possession. When HJK got the ball, they used the whole pitch efficiently and shifted tempo extremely well which made their attacking transitions more inventive and varied.

Until last week, HJK’s had been unimaginative and boring. In the Honka match, however, an active and attacking HJK arrived at Finnair Stadium. The fans will be hoping that the sophisticated HJK is there to stay.

Finland’s friendly against Poland was televised live on Saturday evening. That is not such a common occurrence in Finland, as the media tends to rank football somewhere between tractor-pulling and volleyball in the list of broadcasting priorities. Helsingin Sanomat’s reporter at the game, Kristian Sundqvist, kindly gave NFN permission to translate his column from Sunday’s paper bemoaning this sorry state of affairs:

Last minute excitement over television scheduling decisions, Romanian language internet streams and real-time messageboard reports from fans at the game. This is the cutting edge reality of Finnish football fandom.

Only the senior national team’s World Cup and European Championship qualifiers are sure to be televised in Finland, everything else is the great unknown.

When the reigning Finnish champions FC Inter Turku played in the Champions League last autumn, not a single Finnish TV or radio station cared about the game. Inter’s away leg against Moldovan side FC Sheriff was shown on a Romanian sport channel’s free internet stream. The stream worked well enough, and Romanian is a beautiful language.

Watching the match like that, however, really gave you the feeling that Finland is a developing country in football terms. Champions League qualifiers are part of the same competition as the group stages and even the massively publicised final. Is there another European country where the Champions’ own participation is not televised, but games from the big European clubs are? YLE and the public service broadcasters, is anyone listening?

Last Friday the senior national team played in Estonia, in March Stuart Baxter’s men were in Malta. The games were not televised, and in Malta not a single journalist from the broadcast media was present.

On Monday we got the news that TV Viisi would show the match between Poland and Finland. Fans of the Eagle Owls were excited by this, of course, but there is plenty of cause for concern at the Finnish FA. The senior national team’s games are the scraps left over in the television market, so much so that a marginal channel can decide to screen them at the last minute if they want.

The contrast with ice hockey is huge. The sportingly indifferent and tediously frequent Euro Hockey Tour tournaments are covered as hard news, with the fourth line winger’s bruised heel getting serious attention. Yesterday at least Finnish football fans didn’t need to search out the miracle of a Polish internet stream.

I’ve been thoroughly enjoying this football season. Pub Harald have expanded their beer-selling operations from Ilves to TPV matches, ensuring that pretty much every game taking place at Tammela can now be enjoyed with alcoholic enhancement. And Finnish football, much as I love it, does often need alcoholic enhancement.

An integral part of the Tammela experience is the interactive nature of the entertainment, with grizzled old men shouting comments, often very odd comments, in the general direction of the pitch. Here is a short guide, that will be updated as and when we find inspiration:

Kivia Taskuun!

This means ‘put rocks in your pocket!’. Generally used towards players considered to be simulating injury in an effort to win a free kick, this is, like most of the comments made at Tammela, an attempt to influence the referee’s decisions rather than the players’ activities. These Tampere football people are machiavellian, mischievous types.

Maaleja!….TPV!*

‘Goals!…..TPV!’ A masterpiece combining love for the club, encouragement, hope and leadership, this chant is owned by Jukka Gustafsson MP. Or at least, if it isn’t owned by him he should think about copyright issues, because it is usually bellowed by him from his seat in the main stand, and has recently been used by others without the same gravitas. The pause after Maaleja is important, demonstrating the consideration and deliberation the Finnish people expect from their elected representatives. Maaleja!…TPV! is always, without fail, followed by…

Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh!

Not as articulate as Gustafsson, but aiming to show support for the sentiments expressed by the SDP politician, Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh Man always responds to affirm the first, vociferous shout. The combo often precedes an attacking set-piece for TPV, in which case it is followed by raucous foot stamping and rhythmic clapping, but it can also be used as general encouragement for the team if it looks like they need it.

Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh Man has become something of a celebrity in Tampere. Imitators have attempted to mock him via the wry pisstaking Finns are so good at, usually by shouting ‘Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh’ in an effort to steal his thunder, but he has studiously ignored their mockery and fought off all-comers to retain his position as the number one Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh Man in Tampere. Imitators now need their own ‘Maaleja!….TPV!’ chanter to properly execute the ‘Yeeeaaaggghh Yigh’ manoeuvre, and some wags have indeed paired up and started to imitate both parts of the chant. It’s a tribute chant, rather than a pisstake, such is the established popularity of the original, without which no TPV game would be complete.

Aina sama mies!

‘Always the same guy!’ When the home team wins a free kick, it is necessary to point out to the referee that this is not a first offence, and imply that the guilty party is likely to decapitate several honest Tampere lads if his barbarous violence is not held in check by a red or yellow card. This implication does not have to be supported by the facts, and the chant’s indiscriminate use by the older TPV fans grouped around Gustafsson has caused the same wry pisstaking as previously mentioned.

Every foul on the home team is now greeted with this chant, from several drunken people, thus lessening the impact it had when a Member of the Finnish parliament was alone in loudly demanding justice and fair play from the officials. I personally believe that this imitation, and consequent weakening of the moral rhetoric directed at the referee, is partly responsible for TPV’s poor form this season.

Rantaruotsalainen! Ruotsalainen Kalastaja!

‘Coastal Swede! Swedish fisherman!’. When teams from the coast come to Tampere, their Swedishness is not going to go unremarked upon. At some point during the game the away team is likely to win a free kick, and this is when the Wildean wit of the Tampere football cognoscienti is set free. Rantaruotsalainen is a pejorative term for Swedish speakers, and if a team comes from an area with a Swedish speaking population, then it can be used as an insult for every member of that team regardless of any one player’s ethnic or linguistic background.

They are representing their region, and one of its defining characteristics is that some people who live there speak Swedish.Another characteristic common among Swedish-speaking Finns is a passion for and competence at football uncommon among their Finnish-speaking brethren, which makes them slightly scary. The fallback strereotype is that anything Swedish is effeminate and girly, which ties in nicely with the anti-diving shouts that are the bread and butter of any afternoon or evening spent at Tammela. Combining the two in new and interesting linguistic formulations is one of the true joys of Finnish football culture.

If you have any Finnish football phrases to add to this short list, either email me or add them in the comments.

*Check the first comment for clarification of the correct word order.

We owe you a sincere apology for our erratic previewing of the weekend’s Veikkausliiga round. Our dear friend Egan Richardson is writhing in the misery that confronted his dear hometown of Sheffield, and I have spent my time trying to understand the annual Finnish holiday called Vappu (on May 1st and, in its most liquefied form, April 30th every year). Anyway, here’s our preview for Monday’s two fixtures.

FC Inter (6th) – FC Lahti (11th), 18:30 GMT +2

Inter have scored two goals in their two games, the first one through left back Henri Lehtonen and the other through left winger Kennedy Nwanganga. The problem is that they have nobody else in the left flank to score goals for them. Their striker Guillano Grot is not really up to the task, so somebody else needs to do the job. That somebody else could be their new striker Daniel Osinachi Egwim. I have no idea who the hell he is, but Timo Furuholm is still injured and Osinachi cannot be much worse than Grot.

Lahti are still without a Veikkausliiga win this year, but they knocked Tampere United out of the cup on Thursday. Which is not a remarkable achievement. The Black Laggards are missing long-term absentees Janne Moilanen, Toni Huuhka and Heikki Haara, who are all defenders. They have still got four half-decent defenders, although you never know when they run out of what little luck they have left.

Inter’s ad on today’s Turun Sanomat had a wrong kick-off time, which speaks a lot for either Inter’s awareness or confidence. They will still win the game.

Home win

Tampere United (14th) – MYPA (11th), 20:30 GMT +2

Tampere United have really impressed so far. Newly promoted AC Oulu bagged three against them, JJK got a 2-0 win in Tampere. That’s 5-0 in two games against two bottom-tipped sides. They finally scored a goal in the cup against Lahti on Thursday, but that did not stop them from losing the game. Well, now they can prepare themselves for new disappointments in the league.

On the other hand, they can thank Lady Luck for being so nice on them. At least they went out against Veikkausliiga side Lahti and do not have to face the humiliation of being knocked out by some pub team in North-Eastern Lapland. “At least we tried to play a little”, said head coach Ari Hjelm after the Lahti game. I was trying to come up with a joke to go with the statement. Then I realised that the comment is an unintended joke in itself.

MYPA are the most boring team in the league, and last year’s desperate attempt to gain more attention by writing the name in capital letters didn’t help much. But at least they have a point, and will have three more if they “try to play a little”. That’s what Ari Hjelm would say, anyway.

Away win

What a breathtaking weekend it has been across Europe, with the final day drama taking place in many countries. For some, their faith was already sealed, but for others it went down to the wire as they strived to gain success.

Kenneth Perez scored five goals this term as his FC Twente side won their first ever Eredivisie title under the guidance of Steve McClaren. The Dane featured as Twente ensured their status as champions by recording a 2-0 away win at Nac Breda. Any slip up by McClaren`s men would have handed the title to Ajax, who beat Nec Nijmegen 4-1. It has been a remarkable season for the Enschede side, who have done what nobody expected them to do. And the former English manager was in buoyant mood whilst celebrating their title success “People say to achieve this with Twente is a miracle, but it`s more than a miracle”.

 For Ajax and their Danish Duo, Christian Eriksen and Dennis Rommedahl, they must now forget their title defeat and hope they can win the Dutch cup final on Thursday. They will carry a 2-0 lead into the second leg against Feyenoord and few would bet against them winning the silverware.

Peter Lovenkrands scored the only goal as champions Newcastle United celebrated a 1-0 win away at QPR , in their final game in the Championship. The win was the Magpies 30th of an impressive campaign that sees them return to the Premiership, with a total of 102 points. For Lovenkrands, it was his nineteenth league strike of the season.

 Mads Junker scored from the penalty spot as Roda Jc beat Willem 3-2 to book a place in the Europa League playoffs.The striker has notched 20 goals this term as he eyes a World Cup spot with Denmark.

Jon Dahl Tomasson got on the scoresheet as Feyenoord recorded a 6-2 home win over Heerenveen. Both Norwegian Christian Grindheim and Swede Viktor Elm scored for the visitors.

 Erik Nevland helped ensure Fulham`s 3-2 win over London rivals West Ham, by crossing the ball to Stefano Okaka Chuka for Fulham`s third. A number of the Cottagers stars were rested, following their amazing 2-1 recovery against Hamburg that saw them reach the Europa League final. Brede Hangeland was one such star, but both Bjorn Helge Riise and David Elm made appearances for Roy Hodgson`s men.

John Arne Riise`s Roma were knocked off top spot by Inter Milan on Sunday. The Giallorossi enjoyed a 2-1 away win at Parma on Saturday which had put them back on top, but Inter`s 2-0 win against Lazio was enough to make them leapfrog Claudio Ranieri`s men. Two games remain before the destination of the Scudetto will be revealed.

Sebastian Larsson played his part as Birmingham City recorded a 2-1 home win over relegated Burnley. The Swede crossed for Cameron Jerome who then saw his effort poked into his own net by Burnley keeper Brian Jensen. The win leaves Birmingham on course for their best finish in 51 years.

 Fredrik Stenman scored the third goal as Groningen recorded a 3-1 final day victory over Sparta Rotterdam in the Eredivisie.

Olof Mellberg opened the scoring for Olympiakos, who went on to record a 2-1 win over AEK Athens in the Greek Super League playoffs.

Faroe Islands goalkeeper Gunnar Nielsen was not selected as Man City hosted Aston Villa at Eastlands in a crucial tie in the race for fourth place. After Shay Given was ruled out for the rest of the season, it seemed Nielsen was set for duty, until Man City signed Martin Fulop on an emergency loan deal from Sunderland. City ran out 3-1 winners, after initially falling behind to a John Carew goal. The Norwegian also saw an effort hit the crossbar as Villa`s hopes of Champions League football for next season ended.

Gylfi Sigurdsson scored the third goal as Reading finished their season on a high, with a 4-1 home win over Preston North End. That took his tally to 20 goals for the season. This may well have been the Icelandic star`s last game in Berkshire with plenty of Premier League suitors set to battle it out for his signature this summer.

Janne Oivio attempts to make sense of Tampere United’s future while in a drug-induced haze.

A disclaimer: I just got out of surgery yesterday having torn my achilles tendon last week so I’m in pain and high on pain killers. So anything that you might find weird or disagree with, well… you know. Hey, see that pink elephant? Wait, what?

It may be a bit early to ring the bells of doom for any one team, but if there’s one that deserves to hear the bells toll, it’s Tampere United. Whether they live to see another day is almost irrelevant, so drastic is their fall from grace.

United’s season has started off even worse than I predicted. I remember speaking with Egan before the season and he was close to naming them his relegation favorite. I disagreed, as I did in my predictions, saying that they have enough talent to stave it off for now at least. I may have been wrong.

A look at the team and their two-defeat start to the season and woeful attendance works as a precursor. Also, the team is thin on talent and the young boys seem to be struggling to find form. If the vets are out and the kids struggle, what’s left? It’s not like TamU have too much money to buy replacements. But that’s not the main issue.

Beneath lies a bigger problem. What is TamU, really? Now that Ilves officially withdrew their backing and seem to, unofficially at least, be gunning for United’s head by rising up the ranks, United have no youth system to fall back on. Not that coach Ari Hjelm was too interested in using it anyway, but especially now with the financial troubles it’d have been necessary.

Also, they have no money. Several times as I called CFO Deniz Bavaudtin late last year for Veikkaaja, he said ”we just want to survive until tomorrow, let’s not talk about next year yet.” Well, he did also say United would play in Tammela so maybe he was just fibbing. But still. Budget cuts, massive loss of talent, a leadership void (again, Tuomas Haapala doesn’t count) and no juniors to lean on. Hey guys, look! It’s Finland’s Rosenborg!

United’s slogan has been “menestys on yhteinen”, which loosely translated to “We all share the success” or something. So it certainly seemed in the good times of titles galore and European adventures. But as soon as United fell from grace, the glory hunting folk disappeared to the depths of Hakametsä, or indeed anywhere but Ratina. Only a smattering of loyals remain.

For the record, I always admired United’s ambition.They wanted to be more than just a normal club. So far as I’ve understood it their problem has been that the club wasn’t run very well, money was torched with wreckless abandon and they didn’t take into account that a drop in success would mean the complete annihilation of their fan base and sponsorships because of their lack of roots in their community.

The main problem is that TamU’s only draw was success, and that’s never enough to create a sustainable foundation. They thought this way despite being based in Tampere, Finland’s Glory Hunter Central. Ilves and Tappara feel bad years in their numbers and they have decades of junior work and success to fall back on, not to mention they play hockey, which is the national sport in Tampere. United has neither, and as evidenced, they’re screwed.

They haven’t been helped by the re-emergence on Ilves in football, either. United was founded much on the smoldering wreckage of a bankrupt Ilves back in the late 90′s and much of their support comes from that camp, although of course they draw others as well. But if Ilves goes up to Ykkönen (second highest tier) and reignite their rivalry with old foes TPV, United might be relegated to the role of bystander even if they stay alive. If Ilves find their way to Veikkausliiga in 3-4 years time, will anyone even remember United anymore?

It’s easy for United fans to say now that they’ll never leave their team, but as I’ve written in my old blog in the past, they won’t really know what they’ll do until faced with the choice. And I firmly believe in the pull of nostalgia. When the ol’ heart strings get yanked big time, it’s a whole new ball game.

It’s like the one girl that got away and broke your heart. You know, the girl next door who you were friends with all your life and had a thing for when you got older. Then she moved away to be an exchange student for a few years and you thought she was gone forever. And now, suddenly, she’s knocking on your door. All the while your new girlfriend gained weight, had a botched boob job and her collagen lips make her look like Johanna Tukiainen. Suddenly the old flame’s starting to look pretty good, eh?

When that happens, United will experience the full effect of not building a foundation of their own.What do they have that they could claim as their own? All that exists is one top tier team and nothing else. The issue being, no-one really cares. What I mean is that there can’t be anyone out there who can say “boy, TamU was my childhood team and I need to step up and help them!”, because there’s no history there. For all the gallant efforts of Sinikaarti, a small group of fans just isn’t enough. Even they’ve felt the loss of people as the club’s success has dwindled.

In fact, the Tukiainen reference stands here as well. Her fame is based on short-term scandal and the desperate need for attention, much like TamU’s is based on short-term success and a string of aging veterans that could never last. Now that they’re gone, there’s nothing much left. Standing on air only works when you have gas in your jet pack. I predicted this when Ilves came back to life in Kakkonen and I feel more strongly about it than before. If TamU goes, Ilves will be right there to claim its place. Just watch.

I’m reminded of a scene in Blade Runner, the 80′s sci-fi classic. Rutger Hauer’s character (a battery run human clone) is at the end of his brief but action-packed life. As he’s trying to kill Harrison Ford, Hauer’s character realises he himself is about to run out of life and becomes reflective.

”I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I’ve watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in the rain. Time to die.”

Hauer’s entire mission in life had been to find a way to extend his life expectancy, but what can you do when certain irrevocable things are directly in your system? Arguably, due to the lack of a proper foundation, TamU likewise have a built-in flaw that could very well cause their demise. There is no continuity in it’s core system, no fall back plan.

It might happen soon or it may take a few years, but much like Hauer’s career after this brilliant performance, piece by piece the crumbing facade of Tampere United seems to point to an inevitable fade to oblivion.

The Temperature is truly reaching boiling point as confirmation of both winners and losers on the continent is steadily becoming apparent. Title chasing sides slip up , teams avoid relegation, others are not as lucky , and one team takes a steady advantage into the second league of a major cup final, all in a good weekend`s work.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic put a seal on Barcelona`s victory over rock bottom Xerez at the Nou Camp. The Swedish striker scored the third goal in a 3-1 win as Barca remain top, but manager Pep Guardiola felt his team already had their minds on the Champions League semi final second leg against  Ibrahimovic`s former team, Inter Milan. Speaking of Wednesdays tie, Guardiola was as hungry as ever “ we have come from winning six titles and there is a sensation that if we don’t win both La Liga and the Champions League , that we have achieved nothing”.

Celtic secured a massive 2-0 away win at third placed Dundee United to secure Champions League football for next season. Thomas Rogne deputised at centre back, his first start since a hamstring injury in February and the Norwegian matched United`s attackers with some well timed tackles. While Celtic, who were without the suspended Morten Rasmussen, will be delighted at earning a Champions League berth for next year they will also feel terrible anguish on a day that Rangers won their second successive SPL title, something we knew was coming for a long time.

Erik Nevland opened the scoring as Europa League semi finalists Fulham visited Everton. But an own goal from Chris Smalling and a last minute penalty from Mikel Arteta ensured Everton recorded a 2-1 win over Roy Hodgson`s men.

John Arne Riise`s Roma side slipped off top spot in Serie A this weekend as they were undone by 4<sup>th</sup> placed Sampdoria. Giampaolo Pazzini`s brace severely dented the Norwegian and his team mates title credentials, as they now trail Inter Milan by two points with three games remaining.

Christian Eriksen and Dennis Rommedahl both made cameo substitution appearances as Ajax beat Feyenoord 2-0 in the first leg of the Dutch Cup Final. A quick brace from Siem De Jong, with goals in the 6 and 7^th minute, ensure Martin Jol`s men will take a comfortable advantage to Rotterdam.

Danish midfielder Martin Bergvold struck home the third goal as Livorno beat Catania 3-1 at home.

It was an awful weekend for Danish goalkeepers in the Premiership. Brian Jensen`s Burnley were condemned to relegation after a 4-0 reverse against Liverpool .

Thomas Sorensen suffered a dislocation of his elbow as Stoke lost 7-0 at Chelsea. The Dane was replaced by Asmir Begovic while the match was 2-0. The thrashing compounded his misery and he may know miss the World Cup. Stoke manager Tony Pulis hopes his33year old keeper doesn’t require surgery “He`s dislocated his elbow. We`re hoping they can pop it back in and he doesn’t need an operation. If he needs an operation he will struggle for the World Cup”.  

Kasper Schmeichel`s Notts County side remain top of League 2 despite a 2-1 defeat away to Port Vale. The defeat is manager Steve Cotterill`s first in charge since taken over 15 games ago yet the Magpies remain top as second placed Rochdale also suffered a 2-1 reverse, at the hands of Hereford.

Jussi Jaaskelainen saw Portsmouth comeback from the dead as they grinded out a 2-2 draw with his Bolton side. The Finn`s side were two goals to the good at half time.

Aron Gunnarsson earned Coventry City a 1-1 draw away to Middlesbrough, who are set for a second season in the Championship. The Icelandic international poked the ball home from close range after Stephen Wright`s original effort was thwarted by Boro keeper Brad Jones.

Heidar Helguson scored either side of Danny Graham`s brace as relegation threatened Watford crushed a recently resurgent Reading side 3-0 at Vicarage Road. The result ensures the Hornets safety heading into the last game of the season. The strike was Helguson`s eleventh of the season.

Soccernet recently asked me to write something about Finland’s new TV deal, specifically in relation to the bonuses for fielding  fewer foreigners and the potential implications if this were applied in different leagues, but I haven’t yet gotten around to it.

Partly because I just started a new job and am pretty busy at the moment, partly due to general laziness and interest in the conclusions to ‘European’ seasons, but also partly because the more I think about it, the more I realise that Finnish football is fundamentally different to football in most other countries, and for the implications to be understood then the differences and similarities need to be fleshed out a little more. This is a better forum in which to do that (ie, Soccernet’s readers would be bored shitless reading this, as indeed you might be too).

The formula rewarding clubs for playing Finnish passport holders has received a very positive response in Finland, partly because of the large number of Africans playing for RoPS last season. That was not a sustainable or beneficial arrangement for the club involved or Finnish football in general, but I believe that the nationality of the players had little to do with it, and that other factors are much more important. In most countries the argument is that foreigners are stopping good young players getting playing time, whereas in Finland, the main problem is that elite footballers have it too easy for too long. If anything, there is too little foreign influence in Finnish football, rather than too much.

In their recent econometric analysis of football, ‘Why England lose‘, Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski argued that over the last 30 years top-level football tactics and styles have converged. The development of a European style coincided with the establishment of the European Economic Community, and the movement of players between the core members of that community – Germany, France, Italy and the Benelux countries. As this process has accelerated following the Bosman ruling, the style of play has become fast, fluid, involves a lot of passing and not so much dribbling, and relies on players with similar attributes following tactical instructions that will nullify the opposition.

Kuper and Szymanski argue that this has led to ‘EEC’ coaches like Otto Rehagel, Guus Hiddink and Dick Advocaat bringing this brand of football to new clubs and countries, maximising their resources, and achieving success. In South Korea this was combined with improved nutrition in Korean children, which in turn made those of them that became footballers bigger and stronger. There was also, crucially, a confrontation with the senior members of the South Korean squad, in which Hiddink dropped the captain and forced the group to pull together and act as more of a team, with less deference for the older players.

Finland is a long way from implementing EEC football. There are coaches that could do it, like Job Dragtsma and Mika Lehkosuo, but the players are not yet up to the task. Robert Laul recently commented on his blog that the large numbers of Finns who have moved to Allsvenskan have mostly disappointed, with only Kasper Hämäläinen and Roni Porokara really adding a lot to their teams. The rest are just slightly cheaper than the local alternatives, and not really good enough for a league that isn’t all that much better than Veikkausliiga.

So there is something wrong with Finnish youth development. There are many things wrong with Finnish youth development. But it is a fallacy to suggest that foreign players making it difficult for youngsters is even a very small element of the problem. If anything, it is far too easy for Finnish players, or at least for the ones that end up playing Veikkausliiga football.

When Finnish footballers are 12 or 13, they are paying a huge amount of money for the privilege of kicking a ball around. Many Finns look at this as fair enough, a reasonable price to pay for branded sportswear, foreign trips, coaching and all the rest of it. If football is to be a creative and fun form of childcare, then they are absolutely right – several thousand pounds a year is a fair price to pay. Helsinki football magazine 90 Minutes did a comparison of different clubs, and showed that HJK – the elite team for juniors in Finland – charge kids €2,500 per year. So how does this compare internationally?

“Each player at our Club pays a donation of £19.20 per month for 10 months (£192),” says Marc Jarvis of Wallsend Boys Club. “If the player chooses to pay the full amount at the beginning of the season then a discount is given which means the player will only pay £180.”

This is the club that produced Steve Bruce, Alan Shearer, Michael Carrick, Peter Beardsley and many more professional footballers. I could not find a British club that charges more than £250 per year, or one that would not reduce even those charges if a family asked. The lowest cost was at a village team in Anglesey, which asked parents to contribute just £20 per year. No professional club charged any of the players in their academies anything.

Not every Finnish player has to pay the full price, of course. Very talented poor kids can, if they ask, get the fees waived by helpful administrators, but this is an extremely ad hoc system and it works against late developers (players who are not world beaters at 15 but could improve a lot if given elite training).

It also lowers the general level of the academy and elite training squads, by removing the players who might not make it but are slightly better than the nice middle class kids who currently fill those spots. The talent pool is being reduced too early, in a way that doesn’t happen in modern footballing countries.

This means that those players that do make up the development groups face little meaningful competition within their clubs and from other clubs until they go abroad, when – as Laul points out in relation to this year’s crop of Allsvenskan Finns -  it comes as a bit of a shock, and the players are not able to cope with it too well.

So foreigners in Finnish football are not blocking the progress of young players. There simply aren’t enough young players who regard themselves and are regarded by their clubs as potential professional footballers. Removing professional footballers of the wrong nationality is the last part of a very big jigsaw puzzle, and as Finland hasn’t even opened the box yet, let alone put any pieces together, further nationality-based restrictions on the number of quality players in the domestic league could cause more harm than good.

Markus Kitunen takes a look at HJK’s prospects for 2010.

By all accounts HJK are by far the biggest favourite to win the Veikkausliiga title in 2010. Honka and Inter obviously fancy their chances but while the former have weakened and the latter are still regrouping after a disappointing season, HJK have come out stronger from the transfer market.

After the signings of Janne Saarinen, Rafinha and Peter Magnusson HJK should be a shoo-in for the title. Obviously, however, it’s never that simple and to win back-to-back titles is never a picnic. HJK’s unconvincing pre-season has also raised some alarm. After the success of mid-winter (the Moscow tournament and AIK match), HJK have not convinced during the spring. A 3-1 defeat at the hands of FF Jaro in the League Cup quarter final was not a disaster but raised questions about HJK’s readiness for the new season. One should not make too much of pre-season matches of course but there, nevertheless, are plenty of question marks hanging over Finnair Stadium.

The tactics

At no point in 2009 did HJK play the best football in Veikkausliiga (Honka and TPS beat them hands down in that respect). But with a combination of defensive pragmatism and the brilliance of Sebastian Sorsa, Dawda Bah and Ville Wallén, HJK managed to triumph at the end of the season. This season, however, is about more than just retaining the title. The European League humbling against the Lithuanian team, the name of which nine out of ten Finnish football fans probably cannot remember, left a bitter taste in the mouth of HJK, which can only be got ride of by having a good run in the Champions League qualifiers. No one in their right mind can speak about getting to the group phase, but to reach the third qualifying round would lift HJK, the most successful club in Finland, back to the throne of Finnish football.

HJK have the best squad in the league but they need more that good individuals if they are to cut it in Europe. What HJK lacked last season was a functioning strategy that is keyed to maximise the strengths of the team and minimise the flaws by bringing out the best of the collective and not just the key individuals. During Antti Muurinen’s second era at the club, this has not been achieved.

Throughout last term, Muurinen was struggling to find a functioning forward pairing that would produce goals on a regular basis. One of the reasons for this is that HJK do not have a ball-playing centre-forward who could bring other players in and this way make their attacking play more fluid. Juho Mäkelä and Akseli Pelvas are better at chasing through-balls and although Jarno Parikka has the necessary technical qualities, he lacks the muscle. Fluidity brings us to another deficiency, the lack of a playmaker. Aki Riihilahti, Saarinen and Cheyne Fowler are good defensive midfielders but there is a shortage of attacking-minded players in the middle of the park. Not even Medo fits the bill. The Sierra-Leonean is powerful going forward and extremely handy with the ball, but he is more an all-action midfielder than someone who can individually orchestrate attacking play. And as if to highlight the fact that HJK’s squad building is not as systematic as one might assume, HJK are still without a ball-playing centre-back despite signing Mathias Lindstöm last season and Peter Magnusson this spring.

Possession and overlap

So how to get around the defects of the centre axis? Last season HJK’s 4-4-2 formation was defined by cautiousness which was proof that there is more in Muurinen than his naïve romantic attacking idealism. This brought the title but HJK’s direct, uninventive and predictable no-nonsense attacking approach will not be enough against European oppositions. Better use of the ball and better movement in the attacking third is needed. With the current squad, Muurinen would have a good opportunity to create an active and effective strategy which would not only suit his own ideology but also go down well with the fans, providing the results follow of course. Since HJK lack attacking players in the centre axis, they should take full(er) advantage of their exceptional wide players: Sorsa-Rafinha on the right and Bah-Tuomas Kansikas (or Mikko Sumusalo) on the left; it doesn’t get better than that in Veikkausliiga.

In order to maximise this attacking potential without exposing the defence, HJK should use a flexible 4-3-3 formation. This formation would aim at keeping possession of the ball, fluid playing in the attacking third as well as pressing high up the field when the ball is given away to the opposition. The wingers would have the opportunity to drift wide and hug the touchline (in order to stretch the opposition’s defence and make holes for the midfielders to run at) as well to cut inside to fill in as a second striker (making space for the full-backs to bombard forward). This may sound a bit audacious but this would actually make defending easier. Last season HJK used two players in centre midfield with the result that the middle was often left too exposed. Because positioning is not one of Medo’s best qualities and both Riihilahti and Fowler lack pace, deploying a narrow three-man midfield would make it easier to control the centre and give more freedom to both the wingers and Medo to go forward. Depending on the opposition, the midfield could either play in a line, giving the players on the sides (Medo and Riihilahti) more freedom to make forward-runs, or in a pyramid (with Medo or Johannes Westö in an attacking role). In order for this system to function, each player would need a collective understanding of other players’ movement trajectories and defensive positions and pressing would have to be correctly timed. A sophisticated strategy would require meticulous tactical training and, therefore, tactical savvy that is perhaps beyond the means of Muurinen. But now that Juho Rantala is on board as an assistant coach, this could perhaps be achieved.

Leadership and experience

No matter how HJK decide to play, they have one thing in abundance this season that they have sorely lacked for a few years: leadership. Many questioned the acquisition of Saarinen. Some saw the former Rosenborg and Honka man as an over the hill player and others deemed him an expensive luxury in a midfield full of quality. Many seem to have forgotten that Saarinen was captain at Häcken and has a wealth of experience not only from Scandinavian football and the national team but also from the Champions League. If Saarinen will keep his ego in check and swallow the bitter pill of having to sit on the bench every now and again, his experience and leadership qualities will be tremendous assets to the club.

Furthermore, it will be extremely important that Riihilahti will be available from the start of the season. There is no mystery in the fact that after Riihilahti’s arrival last summer, HJK started grinding results and took a firm grip on the title, something they were losing prior to his arrival. Riihilahti and Saarinen will fill the gaping leadership void on the pitch that neither Tuomas Haapala nor Tuomas Aho, as HJK captains, were able to fill.

The 2010 season will not be a walk in the park for HJK, but the quality of their squad should bring them the title. European football is another matter altogether and much will depend on whether Muurinen and Rantala find functioning tactical solutions to tackle the deficiencies in the team.

Janne Oivio continues his skewed coverage of Veikkausliiga following the preview package published last week.

It’s ridiculously early to do a power ranking, but I don’t care. Having just completed NFN’s Massive Veikkausliiga Preview I was so delighted with myself that I decided to begin a running feature which will run hopefully every other week.

We’ll see what happens in the summer, whether other contractual limitations perhaps prevent me from doing so.

Before I start, some random thoughts on the first week of Veikkausliiga:

• Props to UrhoTV for pulling out all the stops on Week 1. They did a better job than I expected. The games looked pretty good, the studio stuff was ok and the stream quality was nice as well. Canal+ hit it out of the park as per usual, except even they couldn’t help the abysmal play by both Haka and TPS.

• Except for my horribly missed cam’t miss-prediction of the week (KuPS to hold HJK), most of the other stuff played out much according to the preview. IFK was undone by hideous finishing from Beavis and Butt-Head, Honka cruised, MyPa seems overrated and Tampere United sucks.

• The monday night double header is BRILLIANT (that’s right baby, all caps!) I’d prefer if Canal+ had the late game, but still. You get the floodlights and atmosphere in the later game and two matches in a row to end what is usually the worst day of the week. Nice.

• The new schedule works at least on a one week trial, although I reserve the right to change my mind. Being able to watch a massive amount of games works, and getting friday and saturday games is good for away fans and drinkers at home. What’s better than coming home after a hard week, calling buddies over and getting hammered while watching Antti Muurinen out-coach the world? Nothing, I say.

So on to the rankings. As a precursor, the rankings are based on current form and projected form more than the teams position in the table, although obviously after one round the table is pretty much the indicator. I’m running the stuff off my preview and making adjustments according to what we saw and what I think will be seen.

Secondly, if you find some of the comparisons weird, check out the season preview and all will be clear. Otherwise you can only blame yourself if it doesn’t make sense why AC Oulu is run by Batman and Robin. Also, don’t expect me to be impartial, because I’m not.

Here we go!

The Ali Dia Division:

14 Tampere United (Preview / last week: 9)

Oh dear lord. Things are even worse than I thought. United got humiliated by a good AC Oulu team, but they didn’t even have that much fight in ‘em. TamU were abysmal in pretty much every way a team can be. Losing Aleksei Kangaskolkka didn’t help, but it would have made no difference.

The biggest problem is, as anticipated, that the Old Guard (Pohja, Saarinen, Haapala and even Kavén) have a giant salad fork sticking out of their backs. Barring a sudden change in form, they’re done. The young guys need to inject life into this team, but particularly Kristian Kojola looked as lost as a teenage boy unhooking a bra for the first time.

TamU’s night, but hopefully not their entire season, was crystallised in Haapala’s booking. Poorly positioned and late, he lunged into a hideous desperation tackle and promptly jumped up to scream at all of his teammates, the ref and presumably everyone else. Who will take charge of this team?

In keeping with the previews Rocky comparion, it’s early, but I think I see Tommy Gunn in the horizon. Where’s Ivan Drago when you need him?

13 FC Lahti (14)

Lahti, by all accounts, didn’t do much better than expected, so why move them up? Simply because TamU was even worse, but this bottom trio is positively woeful. Lahti looked a shambles defensively, as predicted, and Litmanen hasn’t found his sea legs yet in the middle.

As long as Jukka Vanninen is forced to play in the back four due to defensive injuries, Lahti will struggle. Janne Tömänen and Litmanen don’t exactly inspire confidence in the ball-winning department (which is absolutely essential for any Ilkka Mäkelä-devised strategy to work) and Vanninen, a solid holding midfielder, is wasted as a defender. Hugo Miranda should help as soon as he gets clearance. It won’t be enough to beat KuPS on Sunday, though.

12 KuPS (10)

Abysmal against HJK. The only reason they’re not last is because of TamU. Esa Pekonen decided it was a good idea to play an untested rookie (Joonas Pöntinen) in net on opening night against the title holders. Pöntinen folded faster than a drunken Paul Gascoigne could drive a bus into a tree. By subbing the kid out at half time Pekonen ensured that Pöntinen will be a humiliated shell of a man for quite a while.

HJK showed that with patient harrowing Dickson can be rendered almost useless and KuPS need to find ways to get Petri Oravainen more involved. It’s only one week and a tough game, but KuPS have a lot more work to do than I thought.

KuPS get the edge on Lahti because the two teams go toe to toe next Sunday and at home KuPS must win. And they will. I’m not giving up on them yet. Dickson will run circles around Lahti’s shambolic defense.

The We Haven’t Played Yet But We’re Better Than Lahti, KuPS and TamU Combined Division

10 & 11 VPS & JJK (13 / 12)

The match was postponed, so this duo moves up thanks to the horrid opening week trio.

The “I Told You So” Division

9. Haka (8)

A drab 0-0 draw isn’t probably what Sedu Koskinen (better known as The Joker in this space) had in mind when he hired Sami Ristilä. Haka didn’t really even look like scoring, but rather disjounted and unorganized. They have some curious pieces, but putting them all together is another thing entirely. Ik-Kyung Nam looked lively up front, but his tendency to go down easily doesn’t help. He might form a good partnership with Jukka Santala though as a big ‘n’ small duo as the season progresses, but they’ll need more out of that midfield.

Right now, Haka is exactly what it looks like. A bunch of players put together at the last minute, sink or swim. If Toni Kuivasto misses significant time due to the injury he picked up, Haka are screwed. If they snatch even a point off of HJK in Monday Night Soccer (sorry, NFL has the copyright there and I’m scared of lawyers), Haka deserve an open-top bus parade.

8 MyPa (7)

To be fair, going up against Honka away in week one isn’t exactly a fair test, but by all accounts MyPa had 30 good minutes up front and then folded. Like with Oulu, MyPa try to play an aggressive, active style. The main issue is, do they have the pieces to do that?

ACO will be a tough test next weekend. MyPa can come away with the win, but they’re still miles from being the dark horse many outlets have predicted. This team could take a while to come together.

Frisky Like Sharon Stone in the 80′s Division

7 AC Oulu (11)

Juha Malinen’s high energy game plan worked out perfectly against sad-sack TamU. Executing Batman’s game plan, Robin (Mika Nurmela) was immaculate. The revelation of the game was Dominic Yobe, though. What an absolute beast in midfield. If Yobe can keep up his work rate and continue to combine it with his technique and ability to shield the ball, he’s a good pick for breakout player of the year.

If, as per usual with Malinen, this team only has one gear (top speed), Oulu will struggle against teams that dominate possession and can handle the counter. But at the bottom end of the pile, ACO’s strategy should pay dividends so long as the injury list stays short. ACO should have a good chance of surprising MyPa away next weekend.

6 FF Jaro (6)

Jaro put together a solid, dynamic performance against a struggling Lahti team. Coach Eremenko knows how to exploit opposing weaknesses at least on the offensive side, but getting the D to gel when better teams come knocking will be a tough task. Postman Björn-Erik Sundqvist staked his claim up front with a two goal performance.

Their Sunday game vs. Inter is an absolute must-see. Both played good football in week 1 and shouldn’t disappoint. Edge to Jaro thanks to Furuholm probably being out and Jaro’s Skywalker’s.

The Pretenders / The “I Told You So Division Part II”

5 TPS (4)

TPS looked disjointed and confused away against Haka in a poor match. Star man Jonatan Johansson’s role seemed undefined, Babatunde Wusu was (as predicted) not very clinical and the engine room was still seeking its steps.

TPS won’t get knocked down yet because they had the exact same problems last year before clicking, so they get benefit of the doubt. Robert Milsom looked frisky as the game went on and the defense is finding its steps. Igor Jovanovic is a mean SOB, sure to cause plenty of injuries and potential riots with his rough and tumble style.

Honka will present a very tough challenge for a team that just isn’t ready yet. TPS need an early goal and very aggressive defense to scare off Honka’s kids.

4 Inter (5)

Inter was pretty much everything I expected them to be. Fast, fun and ineffective. The passing game is so well ingrained into the core of the team that it’s just a shame they’re stuck with Guillano Grot as their striker in Timo Furuholm’s absence. Grot has been so sub-par ever since his arrival that I really don’t understand how he gets to keep stealing Stefan Håkans’s money.

Inter looked a bit shaky at the back at times, but IFK is much more direct and intelligent than most Veikkausliiga teams. Keep in mind though that Jaro (next weekends opponent) has similar ability in terms of finding holes in opposing defenses. Dr. Xavier (Job Dragtsma) will have to extract all kinds of mutant abilities out of Mika Mäkitalo and Daniel Antunez to keep Eremenko Jr in check.

3 IFK Mariehamn (3)

IFK gets the edge for being the away team and creating better chances than Inter despite having less possession. IFK continue to have the same problem as last year, goal scoring. Paatelainen missed a few good chances, so did Anttilainen. So much for stepping up. Petteri Forsell in midfield seems like he’s finally getting it, although he could do well to lose a few pounds. He seemed to be busting out of his shirt, and not in terms on muscles.

IFK were well organized and created chances very well on the counter attack as usual, but they won’t go to the top with this finishing. I’d give them more credit if we hadn’t seen this exact problem last year. Will beat VPS at home on the weekend.

The Contenders

2 HJK (2)

Very convincing against rubbish KuPS. Good tactical execution meant Dickson was a non-factor. The offensive play still needs work, but HJK looked much more composed and ready than I could have imagined with all their injuries and changes. Very impressive. Should thump Haka at home next Monday.

1 Honka (1)

Not much to add at this point. A convincing win against MyPa. Not firing on all cylinders yet, and as such a 3-1 win after a lackluster 1^st half is quite impressive, but not surprising. Face a difficult away trip to TPS Sunday, but if TPS don’t improve from their poor showing vs. Haka, I don’t see anything other than a Honka win.



So that’s it for Week 1. Hope you enjoyed it and don’t forget to check the season preview if you missed it and need to bone up on the season. Keep those comments coming and I’ll try to find ways to refine my ranking methods.

I am kicking off my Veikkausliiga season in Turku tonight, and will continue our cherished tradition of live blogs. I’m blogging live on our Facebook profile this time, as the NFN website is somewhat lacking in capacity when it comes to handling a lot of traffic. The game kicks off at 20:30 PM Finnish time.

Inter are without their only best attacker Timo Furuholm. Winger Mika Ojala is also missing, so nobody really knows who will score a goal. Midfielder Johan Carlsson is out for IFK. More on Facebook from 8 o’clock onwards.

A weekend full of late comebacks , goals galore and demoralising defeats was played out , amidst the gloomy backdrop of the Icelandic volcano, which is affecting the way football teams travel.

Celtic seemed to be heading for their second home defeat of the season at the hands of Hibernian, but two late goals changed that. Trailing 2-1 , the Hoops struck level through Marc Antoine Fortune before former Brondby striker Morten Rasmussen struck a late winner , three minutes from time. The Danish substitute stabbed home Fortune`s cross from the right to cue wild celebrations as Celtic more or less ensured Champions League football for next season. Caretaker manager Neil Lennon ran 30 yards to join in the celebrations at the death. Rasmussen was delighted with the team`s performance after the final whistle “ we fought for each other very much. You could see that at the end, we were one goal behind but we still fought on and came back to get the victory”.   

Leon Andreasen didn’t feature as a dominant Bayern Munich crucified his Hannover side, tearing them to pieces with a 7-0 exhibition of football.

Nicklas Bendnter and Arsenal seemed like they were cruising to a routine 2-0 win at Wigan before Ben Watson pulled a goal back for the Latics, leaving the Gunners in a rather uncomfortable position. Nobody could have predicted that Wigan would rally and bag two late late goals to sink the Danes side 3-2.

Dennis Rommedahl and Chrisitan Eriksen both played a part as Ajax thumped Heracles 4-0 at home to maintain pressure on FC Twente, who earned a 2-0 win over Feyenoord to stay one point clear of the Amsterdam giants at the top of the Eredivisie. The title will be decided next weekend when Twente travel to  Nec Breda , while Ajax travel to Nec Nijmegen.

Elsewhere in Holland, fellow Dane Mads Junker struck a brace as Roda Jc enjoyed a 5-2 away win at Vitesse Arnhem. The talented striker now has 20 goals for the season.  His compatriot Morten Skoubo, who is currently on loan from FC Utrecht, also got in on the scoring act.

Gylfi Sigurdsson scored two goals , including a penalty , as Reading trounced an already relegated  Peterborough United side 6-0 at the Madjeski stadium. The two strikes propel the Icelandic star onto 18 strikes for the season. A host of Premiership clubs will be vying for his signature this summer as he continues to turn in one excellent performance after another . He was also incorrectly booked for diving.

Eggert Jonsson received his marching orders after pushing Steven Naismith in the box as Hearts visited SPL champions to be Rangers. The Icelandic star was not only punished by the dismissal but also by the resulting penalty as the Jambo`s went down 2-0 at Ibrox.

In the battle of Scandinavian goalkeepers at the Britannia stadium, Jussi Jaaskelainen`s Bolton Wanderers grabbed two late goals to reverse a one nil deficit against Thomas Sorensen`s Stoke side. The win should stave off the relegation threat lingering over the Finn`s side.

Shefki Kuqi struck the second of Swansea`s three goals as they recorded a 3-1 home win over Barnsley. The Welsh side will need to continue such form in the playoffs to withstand a chance of reaching the pinnacle of English football, The Premiership. After the match Swans manager Paulo Sousa was full of praise for the Finn, despite him missing a sitter with an open goal to aim for. “He kept working hard and was always looking for a goal. Shefki is a player with a lot of personality and he brings that to the squad. We saw his character once again with the goal he scored”. 

John Carew was both the hero and villan as Aston Villa triumphed 2-1 away to already relegated Portsmouth. The Norwegian put the visiting side level after they had fallen behind early on. On the stroke of half time though, the former Rosenborg man missed a penalty, as Villa`s luck seemed out. However a late goal by Nathan Delfouneso ensured a 2-1 win and spared Carew`s blushes.

With four games remaining,John Arne Riise and Roma went back to the top of Serie A in style, beating fierce rivals Lazio 2-1 in the Rome derby. The Giallorossi fell behind early on and were lucky when keeper Julio Sergio saved a Lazio penalty to stop them going further behind. Serbian Mirko Vucinic lead the comeback for Roma, bagging two goals, one penalty and one exquisite free kick.  Riise and his team mates are now unbeaten in 23 matches and this crucuial win should prove the catalyst as they aim to take the coveted Scudetto title. The match was dogged by controversy from the very start, as fans of both sides engaged in ugly scenes of violence.

Morten Gamst Pedersen was harshly treated this weekend. Not only did the former Tromso man have to endure Mikel Arteta poking him in the eye, he also got booked for the matter, in which the referee failed to dismiss the Spaniard. A late goal saw Pedersen`s Blackburn Rovers side go down 3-2 at home to Everton.   

Andres Oper scored the third goal as ADO Den Haag put four goals past an already relegated RKC Waalwijk.