The dream was a point against Denmark and the chance was there. But the group favorite has a future big star named Rasmus Højlund and he sank Finland in the qualifying premiere.
Back at the Park applied to Finland in the qualifying opening. In the same arena where the team played its first historic championship match, the hunt for a ticket to European Championship 2024 now began.
Finland has not boasted about the goals ahead of the qualifiers. After a relatively favorable draw, a championship series will be built and Finland will be represented in Germany next summer.
Union captain Markku Kanerva had previously spoken of four points from the first two qualifying matches, and Finland also had Denmark rocking in the difficult away game.
After Oliver Antman’s equaliser, it was 1-1 for a long time, but in the end there were no points. Rasmus Højlund took it seriously on the big stage and scored his first three national team goals as Denmark won 3–1.
– It hurts and we had the chance to score and even win. The match was still tied at 80 minutes so we should have got a point. Denmark is a good team and we are doing okay, but we could have been better, Antman told Yle after the match.
Finland played in the first half
Kanerva chose to go back to a 4–4–2 formation with Richard Jensen as left back and a midfield consisting of, among others, Antman and Kaan Kairinen.
– The alternative would have been to go in and defend with 4–5–1 but then we would have run after the ball often. We thought we had nothing to lose and went in to seriously challenge, says Kanerva.
Finland also built up some promising attacks right at the beginning, but at the same time the defense was not quite where it should be. Denmark found gaps and in the 21st minute came the Danish lead goal.
Alexander Bah played the ball into the penalty area and there appeared Denmark’s new golden boy Rasmus Højlund. The 20-year-old scored his first goal in the A national team.
After the Danish goal, Finland was properly pushed back. The players acted stressed, the passes did not find their way and there was a lack of creativity in the build-up of the game.
Denmark had bids for more goals, but Hradecky kept Finland in the game with some sharp saves – above all, he saved Robin Lod from an own goal in stoppage time in the first half.
– It is individual situations that decide and it must be admitted that we gave them some chances due to bad passes, says Kanerva.
Antman’s success continued
When most things were against Finland, the unexpected equalizing goal came at the beginning of the second half. Oliver Antman finished off a quick attack where Joel Pohjanpalo first won a header duel and Teemu Pukki found Antman in the penalty area.
The 21-year-old continued his success in the national team when he scored his third goal in the national team shirt and silenced the Danish home crowd at Parken.
– I am in a good flow and feel that I can always score when I play, says Antman.
Efter kvitteringsmålet var det sedan Hradecky som fick klä sig i hjälterollen på nytt.
He saved shots from Mikkel Damsgaard and Rasmus Højlund, and then he also had help from the crossbar when Joakim Mæhle pulled in with his right foot. The goalkeeper was also in the right place and saved when Højlund got a good heading position.
Finland’s dreams of points lived on for a long time thanks to Hradecky’s strong effort, but even the goalkeeper could not stop Rasmus Højlund. In the 82nd minute he headed in 2–1 for Denmark and in stoppage time he completed his hat-trick as he scored to make it 3–1.
– Højlund was incredible in this match. The team is disappointed, we fought and Lukas made some saves. The Danish press was great and this is grumbling.
– Considering the picture of the match, a cross would have been a good result for us. But this was the first match and the journey continues, says Kanerva.
Slovenia won its premiere
Perhaps Finland’s biggest competitor for second place in the group, Slovenia, started their qualifier with three points. The team turned a deficit into victory in the second half away to Kazakhstan.
David Brekalo equalized immediately after the break and Zan Vipotnik scored the winning goal with just over a quarter of an hour remaining in the match.
Finland’s next qualifying opponent, Northern Ireland, in turn defeated San Marino away from home with 2–0.
Results, EC qualifiers:
Denmark–Finland 3–1 (1–0)
21′ 1–0 Rasmus Højlund
54´ 1–1 Oliver Antman
82´ 2–1 Rasmus Højlund
90´ 3–1 Rasmus Højlund
Finland (4–4–2): Lukas Hradecky (mv)– Richard Jensen (73′ Tuomas Ollila), Robert Ivanov, Leo Väisänen, Nikolai Alho – Oliver Antman (72′ Anssi Suhonen), Glen Kamara, Kaan Kairinen, Robin Lod (73′ Marcus Forss) – Joel Pohjanpalo , Teemu Pukki
Kazakhstan–Slovenia 1–2 (1–0)
San Marino–Northern Ireland 0–2 (0–1)
