When Huuhkajat lost their European Championship qualifying match against Kazakhstan and Slovenia last October, discussions started on many different forums about the head coach Markku Kanervan from the sequel. After Thursday’s defeat by Wales, the weight of opinion only increased.
Sports expert Markus Halstin I think it’s clear that after such a 1-4 loss, the head coach and the coaching team will be questioned.
– The big dream that the Huuhkajat would have played in the European Championships in the summer was broken in a rather harsh way. However, it is clear that the union’s big bosses have certainly thought about this option as well, Halsti reminded.
President of the Football Association Ari Lahti admitted after returning to his native Finland that the disappointment of the defeat and the crushing of the EC dream is great. Next, he wants to hear the head coach’s thoughts and plans for the future.
– Markku Kanerva has a contract valid until the end of this year. I have already talked with him before that we will sit down after these two matches have been played, Lahti said and referred to the Wales game and the Estonia match on Tuesday.
– The goal is that we aim to make a decision on one side or the other regarding “Rive” (Kanerva) very quickly after the Estonia match. So at the moment there is no decision of any kind in either direction.
A strangely long contract
In Halst’s opinion, the length of Kanerva’s contract is strange, because after the autumn Nations League, the World Cup qualifiers start in the spring of 2025. He would like the situation to look further into the future.
– I personally feel that when we go to the Nations League games next fall, it would be good if there was either a new coach or Kanerva was given a longer contract. So we would already start thinking about next year and the next qualifiers, Halsti said.
According to Ari Lahti, there have been no discussions of any kind with possible head coach candidates, and there won’t be until Lahti has talked with Kanerva. However, the association has backup plans for all national team coaches.
– We are constantly trying to map the spectrum from which coaches can be selected. That in itself is nothing new, Lahti said.
Although there has been criticism of Kanerva’s playing style and Huuhkajie’s poor results recently, Lahti reminds that Kanerva has a fairly good balance of matches and the team is behind its head coach.
Lahti has been the president of the Football Association since January 2018, and during that time Kanerva Suomi has played 47 matches with a winning percentage of 53. However, the previous two value tournament qualifiers have been disappointing.
– The winning percentage seems to be quite good, we just haven’t made it to the games, Lahti said.
According to Halst, it is currently difficult to come up with a clear number one alternative to replace Kanerva. Haltsi also flags on behalf of the domestic coach.
– We also have to think about whether the coaching team should be renewed with Kanerva. Can some new elements be brought into it so that he would still continue as head coach, Halsti suggests.
Young people should come forward
In these EC qualifiers, new players emerged from the Finnish team. Halsti highlights, among other things Matti Peltolan, by Oliver Antman, Arttu Hoskonen and Kairinen toofrom whom he expects a lot in the future.
– I hope that they really become the supporting forces of the team. That they take more responsibility, Halsti said.
Teemu Pukki said after the Wales game that he would continue if he still fit in the squad. He also stated the same Lukas Hradecky. Halsti would like to see the old horses continue, but reminds that their role cannot continue to be the same.
– They have to support the young people, but they will not be able to carry this Finnish national team for very long. Yes, young people need to start taking more responsibility.
The loss of a million is not felt in the annual budget
When Huuhkajat made it to the 2021 European Championship, it received 10.75 million euros in prize money from the European Football Association.
According to Lahti, after all expenses, the Palloliito left about 4.5 million euros from the tournament. Over the course of four years, they were invested in the future of football, i.e. around one million euros per year. This journal is now in its last year.
When Finland did not make it to next summer’s European Championship, the prize money will also be missed. However, according to Lahti, this is not a great loss.
– That approximately one million per year is not a terribly large sum in the Pallloiito’s budget. The annual budget of Pallloliitto is about 40 million euros, that is, that million is about 2.5 percent of the annual income, Lahti said.
– Of course, this means that we have to save a little and think about where to allocate the funds, but it won’t make a big dent in the Pallloliitto’s budget.
According to Lahti, the cost-saving measures are currently not aimed at, for example, Pallloittito’s staff.
The Finnish men’s futsal team will play for a place in the World Cup in April. Helmarit made it to Group A of the Nations League and qualified for the EC tournament. The men’s next qualifiers are for the World Championships, which is a couple of degrees higher challenge.
Whereas 24 countries qualify for the European Championships, 16 European countries qualify for the World Championships. The quota of European countries increased by three from 13 countries, when 48 countries will participate in the World Cup for the first time in 2026. Previously, 32 countries played in the World Cup.
Lahti is optimistic that Finnish teams will be seen in prestigious competitions in the future.
– We aim to see more competitive places in football in the future than what has been seen in the past.