“We’ve done a little crazy things, but it has worked.”

KuPS, which played strongly in the early part of the season, rose to the top of the list of consecutive loss-free matches when it won HIFK at Töölö Football Stadium Clinton Antwin with a goal of 1–0. With their victory, KuPS rose past HJK to the top of the league and at the same time the people of Kuopio wrote Finnish football history: the team has now played a record 30 consecutive matches without a loss.

On Tuesday last week, KuPS rose alongside the Oulu Palloseura with their 29th loss-free match. OPS played these matches during the 1980s and 1981 seasons.

KuPS coach Simo Valakarin as well as a midfielder who is one of the important pieces of the team Anton Popovitch know exactly what’s been the team’s secret. According to Popovitch, the everyday life of the team is so high-quality that it challenges itself at the same time. It’s fun for the stadium to go practice and work with a team that wants the same things.

– Everyday activities. Every game goes with the mentality that it’s a new opportunity. It doesn’t matter if there have been how many of those winning games in the past. Anything can happen in any game. It’s about a good team if it hasn’t lost 30 games, Popovich said.

– It has been raw work and commitment. The club has given us the opportunity to have good guys. It’s been incredible it’s the amount of focus and the courage to do things. We’ve been crazy at times and done a little crazy things, but it has worked, Valakari shared the coach’s view.

Valakari did not want to give weight to the record before the match, but after the match the situation was different. That’s when the team got to enjoy the achievement.

– I wanted to get into the history books and get there. Play 30 matches without a loss and win a pretty big part of them, so that’s a tremendous achievement. It’s about the personality of our guys and it’s about the commitment of the team. No one can do it alone, Valakari said.

Popovitch is now the second player in his family to hold the record for the Finnish main series, as his father Valeri Popovitch is still the player with the most goals in the Veikkausliiga. Popovitch played 395 matches, finishing 166 goals. Anton Popovich admitted he hadn’t thought about it.

– It may be a good throw to my father that I have achieved something. Dad has experienced a lot in football, so he knows these are great moments, Popovitch said, noting that he hasn’t received a congratulatory message from his father yet.

– I haven’t looked at the phone yet, but I don’t think anything will come from there. There may be some comment about the game performance.

KuPS’s losing streak has lasted a few days to less than a year, as the last time the team lost on May 29, 2021. On Sunday, it has the opportunity to stretch its streak for 31 matches and exactly one year when it faces HJK at home in the top match. Last season, HJK won the Finnish championship, while KuPS had to settle for silver.

Anton Popovich has not yet agreed to think about the HJK game, as before that the team still has a Finnish Cup match against the EIF. He also doesn’t think the team will celebrate its record in that comic.

– Let’s keep it good every day and recover well. Let’s be as ready as possible for that EIF game, he said.

Valakari told his players that they will be able to enjoy their achievement tonight, but tomorrow morning we will focus again on the next game. Valakari also doesn’t want to think that this tube of losing games would carry until the championship. He also doesn’t think the team would sigh too deeply after reaching a record.

– When we started last season, we didn’t believe in losing pipes or winning pipes. It’s always the next game that matters. And if we can load the best of it, it might allow us to play in good places at the end of the season, Valakari said.

– But now it is far too early to think if and if and if. It’s just that Sunday’s game, which means – and before that we still have the Finnish Cup match on Thursday!