Three matches were played in the Veikkausliiga when the Euro final tournament started and FF Jaro and FC Lahti met in the opening of the league qualifiers. The seasons of VPS and Inter ended.
20:34•Updated 20:37
FF Jaro from Pietarsaare challenged Veikkausliiga club FC Lahti in the first part of the league qualifiers.
Jaro took the lead in the opening period, when Edwin Crona succeeded in scoring. The Swede scored a total of seven goals for Jaro in the First League this season.
See the paint in the video that is the main picture of the story.
Jaro got the second period off to a perfect start when Sergei Eremenko gave the home team a two-goal lead from the penalty kick.
In the end, the home team just won the match 2–0 (1–0). Thus, it immediately put Lahti in a tight spot, as they have to close the lead of the Pietarsaari first in order to keep their place in the series.
The traditional St. Petersburg team last played in the Veikkausliiga in the 2015 season. The last time Lahti played in the relegation qualifiers was in the 2022 season, but it was able to stay in the league.
The winner of the match pair will be decided on Sunday in Lahti.
Gnistan’s Penninkangas scored a dazzling goal
The fate of Veikkausliiga’s last European place will be decided in the final Euro tournament. The tournament will culminate in a two-part final, where one of the clubs will face SJK, which is fourth in the series.
Gnista, who defeated VPS on Wednesday with the final score of 1–0 (0–0), is the second team to compete against SJK. Gnistan’s goal was scored by an experienced player at the end of the second period Teemu Penninkangas.
The goal was a real treat, because it looked like Penninkangas had controlled the goal with his heel. Penny fabric has never been known as a natural paint stick. The goal was only his second of the season.
VPS’s season ended miserably. Mikko Pitkänen due to the out, the early favorite had to play for a long time with one man less.
The dream of the promoted Gnistan for a European place is therefore still alive. The club’s season has been dramatic, as its home stadium in Oulunkylä burned down in July.
In the second pair, the meeting between Haka and Inter stretched into the follow-up match in numbers 1–1. The solution was seen right at the end of the follow-up match, when Haymenn Bah-Traore scored the winning goal for Haka. The game ended 2–1 (1–1).
Gnistan will travel to Valkeakoski as Haka’s guest on Saturday.