Finland U17 National Team

How do you rate the qualification group?
It’s very tough. Germany is one the strongest football powers in the world and always very tough to beat. They just won the U17 European title last summer. Clear favourite. The football culture is very deep in Ukraine and we do respect their great history. But they are extremely good today too. We know their possibilities to prepare haven’t been perfect. In the war we stand with them, but on the pitch we really try to beat them. Liechtenstein will face tough times during the qualification. But in football everything is possible, especially in one match, so we won’t underestimate the hosts.

What are the expectations of your team for the tournament?
To go through to the Elite Round. That’s the main goal. We are trying to get good results by keeping our own way of playing a live.

How did you prepare for the tournament?
We have had five events during the year: the camp in February, Development-tournament in May, Baltic Cup in June, Nordic Cup in August and in September we played a double header against Switzerland. In the way every single event is part of the preparation. We will get together three days before our opening match against Ukraine. Of course we are trying to do everything we can during those couple of days – on and off the pitch.

What do you know about football in Liechtenstein and about the country?
In football Liechtenstein is one of smallest on the planet. Never played in the European finals or the World Cup. But Liechtenstein has always a special place in our hearts, because in November 2019 our A-team beat them in Helsinki and secured a place in European finals first time in our football history! I know the country is very small but beautiful. In addition, there is a very rich monarchy. It will be great to visit there first time ever.