A lot was expected from the Finnish men’s national football team in October, but the end result was dull. Huhkajat remained scoreless against Slovenia and Kazakhstan. Good settings turned bad. Finland was left without a direct place in the European Championships.
However, based on the results of the previous Nations League, Huuhkajat can still apply for a further qualification place at the end of March.
President of the Football Association Ari Lahti admits to being disappointed with the October games.
– There were two games that I didn’t want to see. The final results were of course disappointing, Lahti tells Urheilu.
On Tuesday, Huuhkaji had the game in control against Kazakhstan, but the visitors won 2–1 in the last quarter at the Olympic Stadium.
Some of the Finnish fans booed Huuhkaji after the match.
– After all, it was different compared to what fans have heard in the last couple of years. In a way, it was fair. It should have reached everyone’s ears that you can’t be satisfied with the second half. The first half was still great. We just couldn’t score any goals. It’s good that we are open in all directions. When things go well, we are happy, when things go badly, we are disappointed, Lahti states.
A foreign head coach is not excluded
After the direct EC competition place slipped out of hand, the head coach has become the topic of conversation Markku Kanervan station. “Rive” historically led the Huuhkajas to the European Championships last time, but this year the playing has not been so glamorous. Huuhkajat and Markku Kanerva have received criticism for how the development of the game has stopped.
Even before the catastrophic losses in October, Finland had taken more points than the statistics would have predicted. Finland had played beyond expectations, even though there are no top European countries in the qualifying group, apart from Denmark.
Against Kazakhstan, Finland lost for the first time during Kanerva’s tenure to a team ranked lower in the world ranking at home.
Markku Kanerva’s current contract with Pallloliitto is valid until the end of next year, i.e. it covers the remaining qualifying matches, further qualifying matches in the spring and a possible final tournament in the summer.
Kanerva still enjoys Lahti’s trust. In the chairman’s opinion, it is also fair that the head coach gets to lead the team to the further qualifiers in the spring as well, because Kanerva, with its coaching teams and players, has acquired the back door in question.
Lahti believes that the continuation will be considered next year from both sides: Kanerva himself and the management of the Palloliitto.
– If we act carefully in any case, we have good alternatives. Let’s look at the situation calmly. However, there is no reason to speculate about that now, says Lahti.
Is a foreign head coach out of the question?
– By no means is it out of the question. I think football is a global game. We are trying to get the best possible coach for the Finnish national team, Lahti answers.
EC prize money is of great importance
Huuhkaj has a chance to still qualify for next summer’s European Championships, but it requires two wins within a week in the further qualifiers in March and, at worst, in away matches.
When Huuhkajat historically advanced to the European Championships last time, Palloliitto received more than ten million euros in prize money alone. Finland earned 9.25 million euros at the European Championship venue alone. The victory in Denmark brought an additional million euros.
According to Lahti, Palloliito had about 4.5 million euros in prize money left over after all expenses. When the prize money was received, the Palloliitto’s board decided to invest an additional million euros annually in the development of Finnish football. Next year will be the last year when the extra million would be in use.
– If Huuhkajat does not make it to the Games, we will have to cut the budget in that part from 2025, says Lahti.
The importance of prize money for Finnish football has been great.
– We have used the prize money for the three major focus areas of our strategy. We want to increase the number of players. We now have a record number of licensed players. We wanted to train more coaches. Now we have a record number of trained coaches. Third, we invested in managing with information. We wanted to have all possible data available and refined so that football in Finland can do better and better, Lahti describes.
Lahti does not yet say where the possible cuts would be.
– They will be evaluated together with the Board of the Football Association. You have to remember that the Pallloiito’s budget is around 35 million euros. A million of that is not terribly big money, but they have to be saved somewhere, says Lahti.
According to Lahti, the staff “probably won’t be cut significantly.” More specifically, he won’t open the issue until the fate of the Huuhkajie EC competition venue is clear and the budget for 2025 is made. However, the chairman does not believe that the children would be operated on.
– Junior work is a matter of fundamental quality, which is why this work is done. We want children and young people to move even more. We want to increase well-being in society, says Ari Lahti.
Huhkaji’s home games have had a warm atmosphere much incensed in the European Championship qualifiers. There have been more than 30,000 spectators in all home games of the qualifiers. A total of 53 countries have participated in the EC qualifiers. Finland’s level of popularity has been reached in only ten other countries.
Now, however, there may be a threat that the men’s national team will not be seen in a prestigious competition for at least five years after the historic first EC competition.
– We have built a phenomenon around Huuhkajie in recent years. I hope it’s more permanent and not dependent on one win or loss. I believe that the Huuhkajat phenomenon has been forced into the back of the mind of the Finnish audience. I believe that Huuhkaj will be followed regardless of one loss or victory, says Lahti.