Training in the dark!!!!!! A light shade of grey!! Info on Finland!

I just woke up and had breakfast at the hotel. All but 3 (injured players) went to have some teambuilding time together. They are going to drive small formula one cars.

Today , the weather looks typical German. It is a medium shade of grey. When we lived in Germany ,sometimes we went months without seeing the sun and we started out morning by joking about the shade of grey.

At breakfast, one of the waitresses Aranka asked me if I was Andrew. I told her I was and she said she liked my blogs. She was doing the wake-up calls the other day and somehow went online and found my blog posted on the Sonoma County Alliance website. She had lived in Houston for a year and liked my perspective on Germany.

Last night, since the team arrived late from Portugal, they could not train until 8:00pm. It was already getting a bit dark at the start of training so Coach Leo had to hurry.

Training session - Sunday, September 9th - 8:00pm
3 groups of Rondo - 6V2 (several players were injured and 2 players will be suspended due to cards for the Finland game)
Aram took the whole group for a 6 minute run and then stretched for 8 minutes.
Gkers went with Frans and Andreyz for some work with the ball to get some fitness.
8 players who played a lot played Rondo with Aram and the other 12 did some long running with Coach Leo and Bobo -
At the end Aram stretched the group of 12 while the 8 did a few long runs to end it.
Details to follow in the technical report.


After breakfast, I decided to take a walk. I have been on fire with the exercise. In Europe people walk and bike much more than in the U.S. because the distances are shorter and more people take public transportation so they are traveling to and from their stops.

As I walked along a very nice path, it was more than normal to say hello to everyone (mostly older people who were not working or going to school) as we passed. At first I was saying Guten Morgen (good morning) or Morgen (morning) and then after 12:00 noon I would say Guten Tag (good day) or Tag (day). People were surprised to have someone say anything. Some did not reply, so would say morgen and very few would say guten morgen.

The best was on the way back as I entered a small wooded area a man on a bike passed me from behind. I said "Guten Tag", he turned to look, very surprised and grinned and said "Guten Tag". As he smiled he swerved and was headed straight for a tree. He recovered and went off into the distance. The first time that someone actually showed some sort of expression, he almost had an accident.

The schedule for the rest of today is:
Lunch - 1:30pm
Training - 4:30pm - goalkeeper and some players will go to the pitch and some (the ones who played ) will go for a walk/run in the forrest.
Dinner - 7:30PM
Bed - 11:00pm


SOME PAST INFORMATION ON FINLAND -
How did they perform in the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification round -   - • Finland recorded five victories and a draw to end their 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign in fourth place seven points ahead of F.Y.R. Macedonia, with Armenia and Andorra further in arrears. The Finns were nine points behind their nearest rivals, Romania, and never threatened the qualification aspirations of both the Netherlands and the Czech Republic despite some heroic performances, particularly away from home.  - • Although they lost their opening match 2-1 away against Romania, the Finns won three matches in quick succession to remain in contact with the pacesetters. Those victories came against Andorra and Armenia (twice), but more strenuous challenges lay ahead.  - • The Finns took the lead in their subsequent match away to the Netherlands through Teemu Tainio after 13 minutes at the Amsterdam ArenA, but the home side eventually hit back through Wesley Sneijder (39) and Ruud van Nistelrooij (41, 63) to extend their unbeaten record in the qualifying competition. Another defeat followed away to the Czech Republic in Teplice, but not after Finland had fought back from 3-1 down with one-third of the match remaining to level at 3-3 thanks to goals from Aki Riihilahti (73) and Jonathan Johansson (79). However, the Czechs had the final say as Vratislav Lokvenc pounced to score the winning goal three minutes from time.  - • Finland endured some mixed fortunes in their concluding games as the Netherlands recorded a comfortable 4-0 win in Helsinki before Finland responded with a 3-0 win away against F.Y.R. Macedonia. But they were then held to a scoreless draw in Andorra before F.Y.R. Macedonia were defeated 5-1 in Tampere with Mikael Forssell (10, 12 and 61) scoring a hat-trick.  - • But Finland were unable to make a final push despite hosting their final two matches, losing to both Romania (0-1) and then the Czech Republic (0-3).

How did they perform in UEFA EURO 2004™ -   - • Having got their campaign off to a losing start at home to Wales, Finland never really contested the challenge for group honours in UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying action. Instead, an overall record of three wins and a draw from eight outings provided a fourth place finish in their five-team group, six points ahead of Azerbaijan. Italy topped the group with 17 points, Wales advanced to the playoff with 13, while Serbia and Montenegro filled the third place berth a further point adrift.  - • Although a 3-0 home defeat of Azerbaijan provided Finland with their initial points, they lost their subsequent two matches away to Yugoslavia (before their name was changed) and Italy.  - • Yugoslavia, now Serbia and Montenegro, were defeated 3-0 in Helsinki on 7 June 2003 with Finland's best performance of the competition. Sami Hyypiä (19), Joonas Kolkka (45) and Forssell (56) provided the goals.  - • Four days later, Finland would lose 2-0 at home to Italy before rounding off their campaign in September 2003 by collecting their only points away from home thanks to a 2-1 win in Azerbaijan, followed by a 1-1 draw away to Wales.
What is their best performance in the UEFA European Championship -   - • Their best points tally came in the qualifying round for UEFA EURO '96™ when they collected 15 from ten matches which provided a fourth place finish in their six-team group ahead of the Faroe Islands and San Marino and three points behind Greece in third.  - • Finland recorded five wins in succession in the UEFA European Championship for the first time in their history with home and away successes against the Faroes and San Marino before they defeated Greece 2-1 at home.  - • Their 5-0 defeat of the Faroes on 16 November 1994 remains their highest margin of victory to date in the competition. Both Jari Litmanen (52, 71) and Mixu Paatelainen (74, 83) were on the scoresheet twice on that day with Finland's fifth goal scored by Antti Sumiala (36). The return result, a 4-0 win on 26 April 1995, stands as their highest away victory to date in the competition with Ari Hjelm (54), Paatelainen (74), Janne Lindberg (77) and Petri Helin (82) all scoring.  - • Subsequent to their defeat of Greece, Finland suffered their largest defeat at home in the competition - a 6-0 loss to neighbouring Russia, for whom Vassili Kulkov (32, 50) and Igor Kolyvanov (66, 69) both scored twice at the Olympiastadion in Helsinki on 16 August 1995.

Key facts

Finland will be looking to Aleksei Eremenko Jr. to continue his excellent form in front of goal during the UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifiers. Eremenko was the joint third-highest scorer with eight goals in the European zone of the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying round competition. Portugal's Pauleta topped the scoring charts with eleven, two clear of Jan Koller (Czech Republic) and three ahead of Eremenko and Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic.  - • Finland had to wait until their 19th match in the UEFA European Championship qualifying stage to record their first victory in the competition. Having secured only four draws from their 18 matches in preliminaries for the 1968, 1972 and 1976 finals, Finland kicked off their 1980 qualifying round with a 3-0 defeat of Greece thanks to goals from Atik Ismail (35, 82) and Jyrki Niemanen (80) at Helsinki's Olympiastadion.

All-time record  - • Up until the start of qualifying for UEFA EURO 2008™, Finland had competed in ten UEFA European Championships with 70 matches played, 15 of which have been won, 14 have been drawn and 41 lost with 71 goals scored and 129 conceded. - • Finland did not participate in the 1960 and 1964 UEFA European Championships.  - • Up to the start of the UEFA EURO 2008™ preliminaries, Finland have participated in ten UEFA European Football Championships but have yet to advance beyond the qualifying round stage.  - • To date, Finland's heaviest defeat in the competition was an 8-1 reverse away to Greece on 11 October 1978 at Athens' Apostolos Nikolaidis stadium. Thomas Mavros (38, 44 and 75) scored a hat-trick for the home side, with Dimitrios Nikoludis and Georgios Delikaris both scoring twice.

Roy Hodgson

Finland coach Roy Hodgson has built a fearsome reputation leading Nordic sides, despite being born and bred across the North Sea in England.

Early arrival - Hodgson was in the midst of qualifying for the UEFA Cup group stage with Norwegian side Viking FK when he accepted the job of leading the Finnish national side. He was not expected to start work until the summer of 2006, but took over from stand-in coach Jyrki Heliskoski at the start of the year after Viking released him.

Croydon globetrotter - A fairly inconspicuous playing career with Crystal Palace FC, Maidstone United FC and Gravesend & Northfleet FC seems unlikely preparation for Hodgson's globetrotting coaching career which began with two title successes at Swedish side Halmstads BK between 1976 and 1980.

Malmö glory - He returned to England, managing Bristol City FC for a couple of years before heading back to Sweden with örebro SK and, between 1985 and 1990, Malmö FF. Under his leadership Malmö won five successive Swedish titles and reached the quarter-finals of the European Champion Clubs' Cup twice.

Swiss success - He then moved to Switzerland, coaching Neuchâtel Xamax FC before taking the vacant role as Swiss national team coach and leading them to the finals of the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Qualification for UEFA EURO '96™ followed, before Hodgson accepted the post at FC Internazionale Milano, who he led from 1995 to 1997.

Rovers return - A first Premiership assignement followed as he led Blackburn Rovers FC for two seasons, before returning to Switzerland and leading Grasshopper-Club in the 1999/00 campaign. He then spent a season with FC København in Denmark and another with Udinese Calcio before running the United Arab Emirates national team from 2002 to 2004.


Lofty company suits Litmanen

To help mark UEFA's Jubilee, each national association was asked to nominate its most outstanding player of the past 50 years. Finland chose Jari Litmanen as their Golden Player.
By Mikael Erävuori

There were few eyebrows raised when FC Lahti forward Jari Litmanen was named Finland's Golden Player. Litmanen's career with AFC Ajax, FC Barcelona, Liverpool FC and the Finnish national team is unequalled in the Scandinavian country.

High society - The player himself said that he was "honoured" to be included among "a great group of players" for UEFA's Jubilee celebrations. "It is an honour to be one of the Golden Players, who are some of the best players in history."

Cup double - Litmanen's own football story began with FC Reipas in his hometown of Lahti, where he was born on 20 February 1971. He made his senior debut in 1987 and was voted national player of the year for the first time in 1989. Silverware arrived after he had joined HJK Helsinki on the eve of the 1991 campaign - HJK winning the Finnish Cup that term. The next season, with Myllykosken Pallo-47, Litmanen won the cup again.

Ajax sensation - Litmanen then transferred to Ajax and, in 1992/93, played 12 Dutch Eredivisie matches, scoring once. That was the prelude to a magnificent 1993/94 campaign, when 'Litti' announced himself with 26 goals in 30 games - enough to earn footballer of the year awards in Finland and the Netherlands. "Jari is a pioneer, he showed that Finnish players can succeed with the best teams in the world," said his national coach Antti Muurinen.

European glory - The forward duly became a key figure in the great Ajax side of the mid-1990s. He won the UEFA Champions League in 1994/95, and top scored in the same competition the following term with nine goals.

Free transfers - Litmanen's next moves were to Barcelona in 1999, then to Liverpool in 2001, each a free transfer. However, his role at both clubs was restricted for tactical and injury reasons. So, in the autumn of 2002, the schemer decided to return to Ajax. Injuries continued to trouble him in Amsterdam, however, and it was no surprise when he agreed to cancel his contract and join hometown team Lahti in April 2004. He went on to join FC Hansa Rostock and then Malmö FF.

National service - For all his success with Ajax, Litmanen has left a still greater imprint on the Finland team. He won his 100th cap in January 2006 against the Korean Republic and has scored 25 goals despite never playing as an out-and-out striker. Instead, he has operated behind the front men, creating openings for others - particularly Mikael Forssell in recent matches.

'Extremely important player' - Coach Muurinen said: "In the 1990s he had a massive role in the national team; today he has a stronger group of players around him and the responsibility is not all his any more. He has great intuition and his passing repertoire is unbelievable. He has been an extremely important player for Finland, and still is."
A proud Finn - Litmanen himself said: "Finland is a small football country but we are very serious in what we are doing. I have always represented Finland with pride on and off the field. In recent years, we have continuously gone forward and there is no reason to believe that this development will cease."

Singular performer - Finnish fans will hope that their Golden Player will be with them for a few years yet on this journey forward. Whatever the future might hold, however, Litmanen has already made a singular contribution to the national game.