Finland National Football Team

Manager / Markku Kanerva
Appointed / December 2016
Captain / Tim Sparv
Top Scorer in Euro 2020 Qualifiers / Teemu Pukki , 10.
Top Scorer in Squad (Domestic season 2020-21) / Teemu Pukki, 26 (Norwich, Championship)
Most Carded in qualifying / Tim Sparv, 3 yellow cards
Group / B, v Denmark (Copenhagen, 12/06/21), v Russia (St. Petersburg, 16/06/21), v Belgium (St. Petersburg, 21/06/21)

* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing *

Finland Road to Euro 2020

A first major tournament appearance awaits for Finland who qualified for Euro 2020 back in 2019 via a runner-up finish in Group J of the qualifiers. They won six and lost four in that campaign and only Italy were able to better that record. Finland are a side I’m really keen to get a look at this summer and even if the results don’t go their way it will be great to see some fresh faces in Europe’s elite international competition.

They are quite rightly one of the big outsiders to lift the trophy, and are the least likely to make it out of Group B according to the bookmakers but they have shown over the past couple of years that they aren’t just there to make up the numbers. They have recorded some really solid wins against the likes of Ireland and Bulgaria but the highlight came in November 2020 when they beat World Champions France on their own patch in a friendly. You may think that must have been a second-string French side but players such as Paul Pogba and Clement Lenglet started and the likes of Raphael Varane, Antoine Griezmann, N’Golo Kante and Antony Martial all came on from the bench. For a side like Finland that is simply huge.

Finland Euro 2020 Squad

There may be some names that you (or I) aren’t quite familiar with in the Finnish squad but they do have plenty of quality and some names that you definitely will be familiar with. Rangers’ Glen Kamara is a key man in the centre of the park but Teemu Pukki of Norwich is the star man for Finland and despite an ankle injury it seems that the Finnish management are hopeful he will be fit in time for their first match.

Despite not having a host of world-class players or immediately recognisable names Finland do have a quality that is often hard to come by in international football – strong team spirit. Speaking recently, goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky addressed as much, he said: “There’s something special about this team. We have a tight squad and that will be seen on the pitch… I don’t think many people know how good we are as a team.”

Goalkeeper

Speaking of goalkeepers Hradecky looks likely to be the No.1 for Markku Kanerva’s side again this summer and it has generally been that way for some time now. He played every game of qualifying and appeared in the nations league too before missing a few games earlier on this year through injury. The 31-year-old is the only player in the squad playing regularly in one of Europe’s top five leagues where he is the established No.1 for Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen and is now vastly experienced playing at the highest level. Brescia’s Jesse Joronen is the back-up option and the 28-year-old has stepped in on several occasions, although most appearances have been in friendlies.

Defence

Generally Kanerva has deployed a standard 4-4-2 formation but with a tough group to contend with I wouldn’t be surprised to see him opt for a 5-3-2 instead which he has experimented with in certain matches. Paulus Arajuuri and Joona Toivio look to be the two who are likely to start at centre-back whether that is as a duo or with a third centre-back alongside them. Aged 32 and 33 respectively they’ve been there and done it with the national team as far as that is possible in a team that has never been to a major tournament. A lot of what this current Finland side do is based around being solid defensively so I’d expect to see those two in there to help ensure that as best they can. Daniel O’Shaughnessy could be the one who comes into the back line should the manager choose to go with five.

Genk’s attacking left-back Jere Uronen looks the likely candidate for that spot and with experience of playing in both the Champions and Europa Leagues he could be useful for the side’s efforts.

Midfield

It seems likely that we’ll see Kanerva line his team up with four in midfield unless he feels the need to alter his tactics to suit tournament football which may see him switch to a 5-3-2. Either way the centre of the park looks pretty settled for Finland with Kamara partnering 34-year-old captain Tim Sparv. Sparv has 81 caps under his belt and if he is able to shake off a knee injury that he has struggled with since March (it looks like he will) then I’d expect to see him walking first out of the tunnel on the matchday one.

Out wide it is a little harder to predict and does depend on whether they play 4-4-2 or 5-3-2 with several players capable of slotting in. A couple of likely candidates to add into the midfield equation would be Robert Taylor of Brann and Robin Lod of Minnesota United, both of whom played together in the most recent pair of Nations League matches in November 2020. Lod is a versatile player and depending on the line-up we could well see him pushed forward to partner Pukki up-front. A mention also for 21-year-old Onni Valakari who could prove to be a key piece in the Finnish attack if he is given the minutes to do so but he may be used more as a substitute.

Attack

If fit Pukki is certain to lead the line for Finland and for their sake and the enjoyment of all watching I sincerely hope he is, he’s been simply fantastic to watch for Norwich this season for whom he netted 26 times in the Championship. He is also by far Finland’s best chance of making any progress this summer – he led the way in terms of goals in qualifying scoring 10 times. There are others who are capable of chipping in such as Brentford’s Marcus Forss and Augsburg’s Fredrik Jensen but ultimately it’s likely they will all just be playing a supporting role next to the main man.

Finland predicted line-up vs. Denmark: Hradecky; Uronen, Arajuuri, Toivio, Alho; Kamara, Sparv, Taylor, Valakari; Lod, Pukki. (4-4-2)

Finland Euro 2020 Betting Tips & Predictions

Disappointingly for any Finns reading this I can’t honestly say I’m expecting Finland to progress any further than the group stage. It would of course make a great story but in a group containing two teams as strong as Belgium and Denmark and a Russia side that have fairly recent good experiences at a major tournament it looks a tall order. Realistically Finland’s best chance of grabbing any points will come from the Russia game and that lies second in their fixture list so there will be plenty riding on that game and I expect that to be a good one between two sides who will believe they can win and will likely need the points.

Things seem optimistic on the injury front for Pukki and Sparv so I hope they are able to play the roles they deserve having been such key cogs of the Finland machine that has managed to qualify for this tournament. If Pukki is fit enough to play then I think there are far worse bets out there than on him to be top Finnish goal scorer at 1.8.

Predicted stage of elimination: Group Stage

How to watch Finland v Russia in Euro 2020

📅   When / Wednesday, 13 June 2021, 14:00 BST
🏟   Where / Gazprom Arena (Saint Petersburg)
📺   TV / BBC One, ZDF
📱   Online streaming / bet365