Monthly Archives: August 2010

Reaction to Finland vs Belgium

Here are transcripts of some of the interviews given after Finland’s victory over Belgium on Wednesday evening, translated from Finnish where necessary. The interviews can be viewed at huuhkaja.tv.

Finland manager Stuart Baxter
Stuart Baxter, a 1-0 victory against Belgium. What are your thoughts on the match?
Mixed, really. I think we had a very strong bench at the beginning of the game, and we had a team that had a lot of younger players starting together. That was interesting for us to see. I thought the first twenty minutes were very good, and we took the lead. Then we lost our way for a while; we became sloppy with our shape, we became slow with the ball, and we chose the wrong pass too often. It wasn’t until the last twenty minutes, when Jari came on, and he started to get our shape back, that we started to make better decisions. I thought our last twenty minutes was quite good again. I’m very pleased with the result, as it’s always good to win, and pleased that we could get some of the younger boys on the field together.

Did you achieve, tactically and gamewise, the things you wanted to achieve?
We saw a lot of similarities between Belgium and Holland. We wanted to do some work around the box, on our transitions and on our defending. It’s always difficult [to prepare for upcoming matches] because you have to make changes – if someone gets injured then that spoils it to a degree. Some of our work around the box in the first twenty minutes was interesting, and some of our work spinning in behind their back line and timing our movement was quite good, but no, we didn’t achieve everything.

Do things still look good, thinking towards the upcoming qualifiers?
Well, we’ve been to Poland and drawn 0-0, and here we’ve beaten a decent Belgium team 1-0. So our form is OK, and we’ll get Sami back, and we’ve got a full squad of players with some time in their legs now. I’ve been able to give playing time to all of the players I wanted to. We’ve got a broader squad now, and I think we’re on track.

Finland captain Petri Pasanen
Petri Pasanen, as captain today, you led the Eagle Owls onto the field for the first time and opened your victories account straight away. How did it feel to have the captaincy?
I heard only this morning that I was going to be the captain, and of course it’s an honour. Even better was that we achieved a victory as well.

What are your thoughts on the match in general?
The first half an hour was good, but then things began to slip away from us. We let Belgium keep the ball too much. But we managed to regain control towards the end, and a win is a win.

How did you feel about this match as a dress rehearsal for the qualification matches which begin soon?
I would say that it was an important practice match with the qualifiers in mind. As I said before, the best outcome was a victory, and we’ve got that. It’s a good platform for us to defeat Moldova in the first qualifying game.

You’ve usually played for the national team as a right-back, but today you played in the centre alongside Markus Heikkinen. How did that feel?
At my club [Werder Bremen], I’ve alternated between the side and the centre of the defence, so there were no problems. I played in the centre today, but I’m not sure where I’ll play in future.

Would you like to continue at centre-back?
I don’t really mind. What’s important is that I can help the team wherever I play.

Belgium captain Thomas Vermaelen
A 1-0 loss today against Finland. What are your thoughts?
I think we didn’t play well in the first half; they were better for the first twenty minutes. In the second half we put more pressure on them and we created a few chances, but not enough. I don’t think they had many chances either, but it finished 1-0 so we lost.

Finland 1-0 Belgium

An own goal from Vincent Kompany was enough to give Finland an encouraging victory over Belgium in Turku this evening, in a match attended by 7 451 spectators.

Match report
Finland started brightly and had the first real chance of the game, Roni Porokara being put through one-on-one with Belgium goalkeeper Logan Bailly and forcing a save from a difficult angle. The Örebro striker was also involved in Finland’s goal, which came after 13 minutes. Veli Lampi passed the ball along the right-side touchline to Kasper Hämäläinen, whose low cross found Porokara. His shot at goal hit Vincent Kompany’s legs, and the deflection took the ball past Bailly’s dive and into the net, giving Finland the lead.

Porokara had the ball in the net again after 31 minutes, but he was correctly adjudged to have been offside when the ball was played to him by Mikael Forssell.

Belgium’s first period of pressure came at the end of the first half. A long-distance shot from Jan Verthongen was saved by Otto Fredrikson in the Finnish goal, and the resulting corner led to a header from Thomas Vermaelen which went over the bar.

The best chances of the second half went to Belgium. A miscommunication between Fredrikson and Petri Pasanen almost presented the visitors with a goal in the 59th minute, but came to nothing. A similar situation arose in the 82nd minute when Markus Heikkinen jumped to head a ball but collided with his goalkeeper. But Belgium couldn’t find a way to score and the match finished 1-0 to Finland.

Finland team
Starting XI (4-5-1):
1. Otto Fredrikson;
2. Petri Pasanen (c), 3. Niklas Moisander, 5. Veli Lampi, 23. Markus Heikkinen;
7. Roman Eremenko, 14. Tim Sparv, 17. Roni Porokara, 20. Alexei Eremenko Jr, 21. Kasper Hämäläinen;
9. Mikael Forssell.

Substitutions:
6. Mika Väyrynen (for Kasper Hämäläinen, 37 min), 8. Teemu Tainio (for Roman Eremenko, 45 min), 10. Jari Litmanen (for Alexei Eremenko Jr, 62 min), 15. Daniel Sjölund (for Roni Porokara, 62 min), 19. Paulus Roiha (for Mikael Forssell, 80 min).

Belgium team
Starting XI (4-5-1):
1. Logan Bailly;
2. Guillaume Gillet, 3. Vincent Kompany, 4. Thomas Vermalen (c), 5. Nicolas Lombaerts;
6. Jan Vertonghen, 7. Kevin de Bruyne, 8. Jelle van Damme, 10. Axel Witsel, 11. Eden Hazard;
9. Christian Benteke.

Substitutions:
15. Steven Defour (for Kevin de Bruyne, 45 min), 16. Christophe Lepoint (for Jelle van Damme, 45 min), 18. Sebastien Pocognoli (for Nicolas Lombaerts, 45 min), 14. Bernd Thijs (for Christophe Lepoint, 61 min), 20. Romelu Lukaku (for Christian Benteke, 66 min), 17. Björn Vleminckx* (for Axel Witsel, 73 min).

* Vleminckx was a late replacement in the squad for Kevin Mirallas, who pulled out due to an injury.

Afterword
As I mentioned yesterday, this match was not shown on any Finnish television channel. However, I have since learnt that it was broadcast on YLE’s website. The highlights are available to watch for the next fifteen days at YLE Areena (also available to users outside of Finland).

As I didn’t get to see the match, I can’t offer much analysis myself, and for that I apologise. All I can say is that it was an impressive result for Finland, and that the performance seemed decent as well. I’ll aim to provide much more comprehensive coverage of Finland’s competitive matches. More information on that will be provided closer to the time.

Match preview: Finland vs Belgium

Match details
Finland vs Belgium
Date: 10/08/2010
Kick-off time: 19:00 (UTC+3)
Type: Friendly
Venue: Veritas Stadion, Turku, Finland
Capacity: 9 372
Odds: Finland 2.50, Draw 3.20, Belgium 2.95

Preview
Finland take on Belgium in their final friendly match before the European Championship qualifying stage begins in September. The match is taking place in Turku, in the south-west of Finland, away from the national team’s usual home stadium in Helsinki. The football association of Finland have continued their habit of taking friendly matches to other parts of the country, to play in front of a different crowd. Disappointingly, though, the match is not due to be broadcast on Finnish television. The national team’s friendly matches attract such poor television ratings that it isn’t worth any broadcaster purchasing the rights to show the game. As Egan Richardson of the Nordic Football blog wrote a couple of months ago, “the [Finnish] media tends to rank football somewhere between tractor-pulling and volleyball in the list of broadcasting priorities”. I have no idea if the match is being shown in Belgium, but I expect it is.

Head-to-head record
Finland have played Belgium eight times in their history. They have won three of those matches, drawn two, and lost the remaining three. In total, they have scored sixteen goals and conceded eighteen. The last time the two teams met was in October 2007, in Brussels, for a European Championship qualifying match which finished 0-0.

Finland squad
All clubs are from Finland unless otherwise stated.
Goalkeepers: Otto Fredrikson (Spartak Nalchik, Russia), Janne Korhonen (Jyväskylä), Jukka Lehtovaara (Turun Palloseura).
Defenders: Markus Heikkinen (Rapid Wien, Austria), Veli Lampi (Willem II, Netherlands), Niklas Moisander (AZ Alkmaar, Netherlands), Petri Pasanen (Werder Bremen, Germany), Joona Toivio (Djurgårdens, Sweden).
Midfielders: Roman Eremenko (Dynamo Kiev, Ukraine), Alexei Eremenko Jr (Jaro), Juha Hakola (Willem II, Netherlands), Kasper Hämäläinen (Djurgårdens, Sweden), Joonas Kolkka (NAC, Netherlands), Jari Litmanen (Lahti), Tim Sparv (Groningen, Netherlands), Teemu Tainio (Sunderland, England), Mika Väyrynen (Heerenveen, Netherlands).
Strikers: Mikael Forssell (Hannover 96, Germany), Jonatan Johansson (Turun Palloseura), Roni Porokara (Örebro, Sweden), Paulus Roiha (Åtvidabergs, Sweden), Daniel Sjölund (Djurgårdens, Sweden).

Belgium squad
All clubs are from Belgium unless otherwise stated.
Goalkeepers: Logan Bailly (Borussia Mönchengladbach, Germany), Jean-Francois Gillet (Bari, Italy), Silvio Proto (Anderlecht).
Defenders: Laurent Ciman (Standard Liege), Olivier Deschacht (Anderlecht), Guillaume Gillet (Anderlecht), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City, England), Sebastien Pocognoli (Standard Liege), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit St Petersburg, Russia), Jelle Van Damme (Wolverhampton, England), Thomas Vermaelen (Arsenal, England).
Midfielders: Thomas Buffel (RC Genk), Kevin De Bruyne (RC Genk), Steven Defour (Standard Liege), Eden Hazard (Lille, France), Jonathan Legear (Anderlecht), Christophe Lepoint (Gent), Bernd Thijs (Gent), Jan Vertonghen (Ajax, Netherlands), Axel Witsel (Standard Liege).
Strikers: Romelu Lukaku (Anderlecht), Kevin Mirallas (Olympiakos, Greece), Benteke (Standard Liege).

Analysis
Finland may be the favourites according to the bookmakers, but that must only be due to their home advantage as their squad is considerably weaker than that of Belgium. In the absence of Sami Hyypiä, Finland will be light at the back against exciting talents like Eden Hazard and Steven Defour, who have both been linked with moves to some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Belgium’s defence looks strong, too, with Thomas Vermaelen and Vincent Kompany both plying their trade in the English Premier League. On paper, it will be tough for Finland to get anything from the match, but it is difficult to predict which players will be selected for any international friendly and therefore how strong the teams will be. I hope Finland use the match to take a look at their younger players, such as Tim Sparv, who will become increasingly important for them as the Euro qualifiers stretch on, and in the long-term future. It is a bit clichéd to say “the result is more important than the performance”, especially before a match, but I believe it’s true in this case.

Prediction
Finland 1-2 Belgium.

Stuart Baxter’s Celtic Affair

I’ve been away again, in Central Ostrobothnia (Keski-Pohjanmaa). It was beautiful. Lucky me!

Stuart Baxter, head coach of the Finnish football team, has been involved in a somewhat embarrassing affair with Scottish football club Celtic FC, one half of the “Old Firm” of dominant clubs in Glasgow. Here’s how the story unfolded.

Neil Lennon, a former captain of Celtic, was appointed caretaker manager of the club in March of this year, after the previous manager, Tony Mowbray, had been sacked for poor results. He had only been asked to take over until the end of the season, but he won all four of his league games, impressing sufficiently to gain the job on a full-time basis in June.

Lennon’s first competitive game as manager proper was against Portuguese outfit SC Braga, in a qualifying round for the Champions League. Celtic gave a toothless display and went down 3-0.

Despite Lennon’s attempt to put a positive spin on the match, the result seemed to make the Celtic board of directors panic: they had made the decision to put a managerial novice in charge and were now very worried about his lack of experience. It would have been ridiculous to sack Lennon after one match, so they decided to bring in someone else to work alongside him, an old hand who could give him advice and act as something of a father figure. That someone was Stuart Baxter.

Baxter was contacted by Celtic and asked to work as a “consultant”, as Baxter himself described his new role. He gave a verbal agreement to Celtic and went public with it, without getting the permission of his employers at the Finnish Football Federation (Suomen Palloliitto). When rumours began to circulate that the federation were not going to approve the appointment, all concerned began talking about the role in much less formal terms – Baxter was not going to be employed by Celtic, merely provide advice to Lennon by telephone when he wanted it.

However, the performance director at the Finnish football federation, Kimmo Lipponen, then came out and announced that the federation were giving Celtic a straight “no” to Baxter becoming involved with them at all. Baxter was then forced into a U-turn, stating “I do not have any agreement with Celtic and it is not true that I have agreed on a role there. I am fully committed to my work with the Finland team.”

So, what should we make of this whole series of unfortunate events? The first thing to say is that it is embarrassing for everyone involved. Lennon has never wanted a “father figure”, and must surely now be questioning whether his employers have faith in him. The executives at Celtic appear to have panicked and disrupted their team’s pre-season. Baxter looks a fool for announcing an agreement with Celtic before he had permission to do so, and the Finnish Football Federation look like they have a dissatisfied, or even disloyal head coach.

I do not think this will have serious ramifications for Finland. Baxter has already proved his worth to the national team and will surely stay in his job until the end of the Euro 2012 qualification campaign. International management is very different from club management, in that it is only in focus a few times a year. There is plenty of time for small stories such as this one to dissolve away while the media are more interested in domestic football. Finland play Belgium in a friendly in one week’s time, and I expect this affair will go away quietly after that, particularly if Finland can secure a victory.

At a press conference yesterday, Baxter seemed a little annoyed with the media for creating such a big story out of this, but he said a few sensible things that should help to diffuse the situation. When asked how much he thought he would be in contact with Celtic over the course of the coming season, he replied: “I think that I would be a fool if my contact with Celtic over the next few months was to be more than with any other club. I don’t think my employer would like it, and I don’t think that my credibility would be served by having extreme co-operation with them. If it’s a few conversations now and again, then I can control it and I’ll have a few conversations. If I feel it’s becoming a role, then I’ll obviously steer clear. I don’t think I’m unintelligent in that respect, and I don’t think I’m insensitive to the feelings of the people around here.”

So, no serious harm done, or so it would seem. Over in Glasgow, though, the pressure will continue to mount on Lennon unless he can inspire Celtic to turn around their 3-0 deficit against Braga at home tonight. He has also been distracted by a transfer saga involving one of his wingers, Aiden McGeady. However, this blog is not the place to speculate on his future.

In other news, Baxter announced his squad for next week’s match against Belgium, to be played in Turku. It is available on the YLE website. Jari Litmanen’s international career continues, as does Sami Hyypiä’s, though the latter does not feature in this squad due to his heavy club schedule and Baxter’s wish not to overwork the 36-year-old.