Huuhkajat succeeded in his mission and washed his face after the defeats in October. A sense of relief was felt by both Teemu Puki and Markku Kanerva, writes Urheilu’s Jussi Vainikka from the Olympic Stadium.
Jussi Vainikka Sports reporter
A little while before the meeting between Huuhkajie and Northern Ireland, there was a quiet atmosphere at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium. The custom is to announce the starting line-up so that the field announcer Pasi Läpinen calls out the players’ first names and the audience responds with their last names.
On Friday, Läpinen came to his place ready and glanced towards the North Pole, perhaps a little worried. It was emptier than usual, and the shouts of the name did not echo with the decibel readings of previous matches.
However, by the start of the game, the stand was filled to a commendable extent. More than 28,700 spectators saw Huuhkajie’s second crushing victory in the qualifiers at the stadium.
After the game ended, the clock had a completely different sound, also measured in decibels. The players celebrate the victory in front of Pohjoikaarte in a good atmosphere. During the match, Läpinen got a proper response to his shouts, when Joel Pohjanpalo, Daniel Håkans, Teemu Pukki and Robin Lod they all hit at once.
This is exactly what Huuhkajat was missing.
In the previous match, the home crowd whistled the Huuhkajat into the locker room, when Kazakhstan won and took away Finland’s chances of advancing from the qualifying group to the European Championships.
Friday night’s fireworks restored faith in the race venue. It still needs two wins in the March playoffs. Not a funnier situation, looking at the history of Huhkajie. The games in March are generally the first in the history of the national team in the further qualification of any prestigious tournament.
In Monday’s match against San Marino, we are allowed to expect more goals. The successes of Teemu Puki and Robin Lodi were especially important for Huuhkaji on Friday. A sense of relief was emanating from Puki’s goal ventilation, as he had finished four matches in a row without a goal. There has also been criticism.
As the icing on the cake, Pukki served a tasty pass to his radar pair Lodi for Finland’s last goal. Both of them represent the MLS series Minnesota United at the club level, in whose office they certainly lingered during the local lunchtime.
The head coach also exuded relief Markku from Kanerva for other reasons than recovering from the corona virus. He ran to the corner flag to congratulate Daniel Håkans after the 2–0 goal. A great hit, by the way. Håkans has performed so strongly in the qualifiers that he is a strong candidate to open in the further qualifiers as well.
After the initial shyness, the audience also returned to the old familiar, but with new spices. The song that ended with the words “Suomi Finland, perkele” was a completely new program number, at least at the Olympic Stadium. In line with that, the players were also welcomed in front of Pohjoikaarte after the match.
There was undoubtedly more of a traditional strong word atmosphere in Huuhkaji’s game performance than in the October matches.
It is also needed in the further qualification in March. Huahkajat is still hanging on aboard the German race train.
Finland ends its European Championship qualifier against San Marino on Monday. The match starts at 21:45 and broadcast on channels at 21:15.
Finland won on Friday 17.11. Northern Ireland 4–0.
1–0 Joel Pohjanpalo, 42 min. (from penalty kick)
2–0 Daniel Håkans, 48 min.
3–0 Teemu Pukki, 74 min.
4–0 Robin Lod, 88 min.
Denmark–Finland 3–1
Northern Ireland–Finland 0–1
Finland–Slovenia 2–0
Finland–San Marino 6–0
Kazakhstan–Finland 0–1
Finland–Denmark 0–1
Slovenia–Finland 3–0
Finland–Kazakhstan 1–2
Finland–Northern Ireland 4–0
Mon 20.11. at 21:45 San Marino–Finland
The best two of the group will qualify for the summer 2024 European Championships, which will be played in Germany. shows all Huuhkajie’s qualifying matches live.