HJK’s captain Miro Tenho managed to score when the team beat Ilves without head coach Toni Korkeakunna, who was suspended. SJK captured its shares at the top of the Veikkausliiga.
In the Football Veikkausliiga, HJK took an important 1–0 win over Ilves, thinking about the team’s championship hopes. There were no less than nine representative team players from HJK, who were playing in the Champions League qualifiers.
What was also special about the match was that the newly appointed head coach Toni Korkeakunnas was on the sidelines due to the red card he received in the final match of last season. The second coach who moved to the Helsinki team from FC Haka made his debut as head coach Ossi Virta.
Defender of the people of Helsinki Miro Tenho finished the match’s only hit in the 53rd minute.
Especially at the end of the match, Ilves, who attacked dangerously, finally couldn’t get closer to the post and the team’s goalless streak is now three matches long. The last victory of the Tampere team was at the end of May.
The mark of the new coaching team could be seen in HJK’s performances in any case, and especially the scoreless game warmed the mind of captain Tenho.
– I think it was especially visible in the first half, if you don’t count the first ten minutes. The ball was controlled in Ilves’ central area. Even though it was quite cramped, we didn’t drift to the sides, Tenho described on Ruuttu’s broadcast.
HJK’s Tuomas Ollila was, like Tenho, satisfied with his team’s performance.
– It was a really good game. We created a lot of scoring chances and we could have scored a lot more goals. The opponent was also able to create a couple of dangerous positions, but apart from those, I think it was a good match and we were very much in control.
– We have gone through that we want to be a bit more direct and attack more dangerously and from the middle lane more, Ollila says about the changes brought by Korkeakunnas.
Ollila also praises the team’s current atmosphere. Katse is already firmly on the second qualifying round of the Champions League, when HJK will face Norwegian Molde at home on Tuesday.
– Now the full focus is on that match. There are a lot of games, so you can’t dwell on it too much, you have to focus on the next match.
Seinäjoki captured his lead
AC Oulu, which is fourth in the series, beat Kotka KTP with 3–1 goals. The opening goal of the match was completed by Oulu Yassin Daoussi, for whom the hit was the first of the season and Veikkausliiga career. Daoussi performed his role as a winger strongly and was building as well Rasmus Karjalainen 2–1 winning goal. In Oulu, a different player was recorded as the scorer of each goal.
SJK secured their place at the top of the Veikkausliiga with a 2–1 win over FC Inter. As a small consolation, Inter managed to break SJK’s goalless draw in the last moments of extra time, when the substitution Otto Lehtisalo scored his first league goal by heading the ball into the net of Seinjajoki.
AC Oulu – KTP 3–1 (1–0)
Daoussi 12′ 1–0
Pozo-Venta 68′ 1–1
Karelian 71′ 2–1
Coffey 80′ 3–1
HJK–Ilves 1–0 (0–0)
Tenho 53′ 1–0
FC Inter – SJK 1–2 (0–0)
Moreno Ciorc 47′ 0–1
Gasc 66′ 0–2
Lehtisalo 90+5′ 1–2
You can find the league table at this link.