Valkeakoski’s Haka is holding on to the Scottish striker, who leads the series’ goal statistics with 11 hits. The goalscorer’s statistics and talent have already been noticed by foreign clubs as well.
VALKEAKOSKI. Lee Erwin looks up, takes a couple of sharp steps, and with a single touch, puts a hard focus on the rump. The Scottish striker returns to the arc of the penalty area and finishes again. And again.
His face doesn’t even waver. Not with Erwin, and not with anyone else in Haka’s training. These have been seen. The fiery Erwin leads the Veikkausliiga goal statistics with 11 hits, and there is no indication that the taps are about to close.
Finishers of Erwin’s caliber are rarely seen on Finnish courts. He hits with his right foot, with his left foot and with his head and inoculates opponents from game situations as well as from free kicks.
Valkeakoski Haka’s head coach Teemu Tainio invents only Inter from the domestic series Petteri Forsellin, capable of quality shots with both feet. Even at the absolute top level, a versatile finishing ability like Erwin’s is rare.
Tainio throws a tough analogy. He has a lot in common with the French star of Real Madrid in Erwin In Karim Benzema.
– Like Benzema, Erwin knows how to move cunningly. He doesn’t always slavishly follow the ball’s movements with his movements and also knows how to strike from the defender’s dark side. It makes the work of the kits difficult, Tainio reasons and does not back down from his analogy.
Erwin, 28, is lying on the new artificial grass of the Tehtaa field and looks up a little. The man doesn’t understand Finnish yet, but Tainio’s words catch a glimpse of a familiar name.
– If only I had something like Benzema. He is my favorite player. I appreciate the comparison, but we have nothing in common, Erwin laughs.
The goal stick is unnecessarily humble, even though there is a way to go from the Veikkausliiga to the top leagues. Quality shines far from him. One coach described Erwin, who played in the main league of his country at the time, as “ridiculously talented”.
“You can’t come to Finland or us to cool off”
Erwin’s resume includes four spells in the Scottish League, two of which he describes as successful and two as bad. In any case, the man had time to prove that he can play at a high level. In the spring, he took Finland as a new direction, when playing time in St. Mirren withered away.
– Based on the resume, we knew that he could be a profile player for us. I talked with him a few times on the phone and I was convinced of his motivation, Tainio describes the recruitment.
– However, a CV alone is not enough. You cannot come to Finland or us to cool down. That too has been seen.
Erwin works hard and demands a lot from himself and his teammates. So far, at least, the equation has been winning.
At this rate, Erwin will be the first league player in four years to surpass the 20-goal phantom mark. Last time, HJK succeeded in the trick João Klauss. Brassi forged 21 cabinets for the Club in 2018. Now he represents the MLS club St. Louis City.
Veikkausliiga’s previous goal king wearing Haka’s colors is himself Valery Popovichwho scored no fewer than 23 hits in 1999.
– It’s great that I have more than 10 goals this early in the season. However, the most important thing is that we succeed as a team, and we haven’t lost in ages (six league games), says Erwin.
The sharp grips have aroused interest in Erwin outside of Finland. CEO of Haka Olli Huttunen told a week ago For Aamulehti (you switch to another service), that a Turkish club made a six-figure offer for Erwin. However, the fight did not heat up.
Tainio previously stated that Erwin is not for sale at any price. Huttunen later stated that every player has a price tag.
– I have heard about the interest and talked with “Oka” (Huttunen). If any club wants to sign me, they have to approach Haka. Of course, it may be that I will continue here next season as well. We have tentatively talked about a sequel, but we’ll see.
A wild seven minutes in Iran
Erwin dares to make bold leaps. In the summer of 2018, he moved from Scotland to the Iranian premier league. It only lasted a few months at Pesti Tractor, but Erwin managed to make history. The man scored the fastest hat trick in the Iranian league.
– That game was crazy! It’s my favorite match. We were losing and I came on as a substitute in front of 70,000 spectators. I scored three goals in seven minutes, Erwin smiles.
After that match, things came to a head and Erwin ran into the old culture of the country. For example, he was not allowed to bring his daughter to Iran because he was not married. The international football association Fifa was needed to sort out the whole mess, but Erwin no longer wants to return to the subject.
He says that he has a great time in Finland. Erwin lives in Tampere and hopes that his loved ones will be able to visit in the near future. Then he could properly speak the thick Scottish dialect, which is sometimes difficult for his teammates to understand.
– In the dressing room, it sometimes happens that Lee says something and the others then ask me “what did he say”. I’ve had Scots and Irish people in my teams, so I’ve learned to understand dialects a bit, Tainio, who played in England for a long time, laughs.
On Sunday, the smile may freeze when series leader KuPS arrives on Tehtaa’s field. Haka’s undefeated streak, which started in May, is being severely tested.