Anssi Karjalainen
Finland should specifically hope for another Zenican visit, writes Anssi Karjalainen.
Joel Pohjanpalo did not wish to travel to Zenica on Friday. Stock photo. Jussi Eskola
On Friday, Joel Pohjanpalo cheered in the stands of the Helsinki Olympic Stadium when he heard one word: Zenica.
– Don’t talk about it.
– If it comes, it comes. Let’s hope that someone else will come sometime, Pohjanpalo said and laughed.
Zenica is one of the most polluted cities in Europe. In addition, Bosnia and Herzegovina always gets to play there in front of a really passionate group of supporters. During the match, the atmosphere towards the opponent is downright hostile.
Huuhkajat striker Pohjanpalo certainly indicated that the change would be refreshing. However, after the final round of the EC qualifiers, the harsh truth is that Finland should specifically hope for one more Zenican visit to the further qualifiers.
Why? Because another option would be a guest trip to Poland or Wales.
Italy secured their direct race spot on Monday. With that, one of the trio Finland, Iceland or Ukraine will be drawn to fill the A path of the further qualifiers.
If Huhkajat gets there – specifically have to – another one of the top countries mentioned above will meet. Against Poland or Wales, Finland would be a huge underdog on the away field.
The crushing defeat in the last EC qualifiers in Zenica can still haunt the mind, but it is worth remembering what has happened since then.
In the World Cup qualifiers, Huuhkajat sought a sensational victory in a chaotic match, where Jere Uronen even received a red card. On Sunday, Bosnia and Herzegovina ended their minor victories with a 1-2 loss against Slovakia.
Bosnia and Herzegovina picked up only nine points during the entire qualifiers and conceded no fewer than 20 goals. The Bilino Polje stadium can accommodate 15,000 spectators, but against Slovakia there had arrived only 3,800 pairs of eyes.
The word crisis is not an understatement. The national team and the country’s football association are under enormous public pressure and criticism.
If Finland avoids getting on the A path, it will play against this very national team next March in the semifinals of the further qualifiers.
The road to the European Championships is much more realistic through the B path. Finns have reason to be excited about Thursday’s draw day.