Fredrik Jensen has gotten to know Jacob Friis, who coaches him in his club team FC Augsburg, longer than other Finnish national team players.
Samu Saatsi,
Jussi Vainikka
14:29•Updated 14:31
– I heard about it a little earlier than the others, of course, FC Augsburg and Huuhkajie Fredrik Jensen tells Urheilu on the phone.
The new head coach of the Finnish men’s national football team Jacob Friis stepped in front of the media at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium on Monday. Jensen was one of those Finnish players who already received information about the new national team pilot well before Monday. Friis is still coaching Jensen for a while in Augsburg, which plays in the German Bundesliga.
– I talked to Jacob about it already before our Christmas holidays and even more during January. So I was probably among the first to hear from the players that this would be Jacob’s chance. He was really excited about it. I think this is also the right path for him, Jensen describes.
However, Augsburg’s sports boss was the first to make the matter public Michael Strollwho revealed the deal to Kicker after the win over Werder Bremen.
– It went as it often happens in football, that no matter how hard you try to keep all the information a secret, it doesn’t stay, Jensen says about the revelation of his new boss.
He has not yet shared thoughts about the new head coach with the other Huuhkajat players. Frisia’s first baptism of fire will be the World Cup qualifiers in March away from home against Lithuania and Malta.
– In the coming weeks before that first event, we will definitely contact each other and talk more about it. Now the busy church seasons have limited.
“With him, there will be changes to how we play”
Then to what interests many supporters of the Finnish national football team. What kind of coach do Huuhkajat get from the point of view of his coach?
Jensen states at the outset that he cannot say what kind of head coach Finland will get. However, Friis has worked as an assistant coach in Augsburg. But you can find the description from him.
– We have already been able to work together for a while. He is clear to the player about his requirements, what he wants and how things are done. He is also very clear about how he wants us to play.
The attacking midfielder also describes Friis as a good and open person. In his opinion, the image of the head coach at the press conference in Helsinki was true.
Jensen also says something out loud that many have been thinking about since the appointment as coach.
– I am sure that with him there will be changes to the way we play in the national team. However, it is normal with the arrival of a new coach. However, in my opinion, it is only positive.
The training rhythm gets a change
Augsburg’s Finnish player says that Friis asked him more about “this and that” about the Finnish national team. However, according to Jensen, the biggest change has been clear to Friis since the beginning.
– It has been clear to him that it is a bit different coaching. The rhythm changes with the national team. Daily training is not like the club team, but the national team events are close and intense weeks. It is its own challenge to get all the necessary information to the players.
Jensen says that he is “100% sure” that Friis will be able to do that with his actions.
– It’s really nice to see when someone has the kind of passion he had for coaching Finland. Huuhkajat gets a head coach who is full of enthusiasm, who wants to show that he cares about his job. This will be an interesting and fun episode when the national team events start again, he promises.
He also does not doubt that the good team spirit that prevailed in Huuhkaj would change with the arrival of Friis.
– It is clear and a good thing that the new coach brings new things. It’s up to us players to answer them. But I don’t think that our team spirit will change, it’s not going anywhere.
Listen to the latest episode of Urheilu’s 11 friends football podcast, which discusses what kind of head coach the Huuhkajat will get from Jacob Friis and how the Dane was chosen to lead the national team.