20 Apr 2027
Tuesday
Process
38 Edition

The HJK Courier

19 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

HJK leave it late against Ilves

Ninety minutes of very little, and then everything at once. The winner arrived in the 86th, and Ilves spent what remained of the match appealing to the referee rather than chasing the ball.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Match

HJK see off Ilves

Three points for HJK, 2‑1 the final word against Ilves in a contest settled by the finer margins.

The terraces

HJK supporters have found a favourite in Matías Bergara

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Matías Bergara has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Player ratings

Lassi Lappalainen in the eights

A performance of 8.09 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

The dugout

Juha Pohjanpalo: “That is the standard”

“That is what I want every week. Not the result, the way they went about it.” The manager, after 2‑1, already talking about the next one.

The dugout

Matej Marković gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Matej Marković is on it.

Player ratings

Egas Cacintura was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 12. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

In brief

Back issues
37 Edition

The HJK Courier

12 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

6 saves: Matej Marković was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Player ratings

Nikolai Alho beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 22. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Boardroom

Graduation day at HJK

5 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.

Transfer targets

Colón tell HJK: Lucas Cuffia is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Liam Möller

At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Market

HJK promote Juhani Arajuuri from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Juhani Arajuuri has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

Market

One of our own: Robin Raitala joins the HJK first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Robin Raitala is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

Market

HJK promote Kaan Toivio from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Kaan Toivio has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

In brief

36 Edition

The HJK Courier

5 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

So close: David Ezeh’s move dies late

The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. HIFK moved on, David Ezeh reports back to HJK, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.

Boardroom

HJK close the window on a squad of their own making

5 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

Santeri Haarala is no longer first choice

The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Santeri Haarala has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.

Squad

The armband comes off Alexander Ring

HJK will explain it as a decision about the team, and it may well be one. A dressing room has never once read it that way.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

The dugout

The manager makes David Ezeh a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at HJK. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

Market

The window shut and Till Cissokho is still in the building

HJK spent a month trying to move him and nobody rang back. He trains with a squad that has told him where he stands, and both sides start counting down to the next one.

In brief

  • The dugout The manager plants his flag on Lassi Lappalainen
  • Boardroom The HJK production line keeps running
35 Edition

The HJK Courier

29 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

20 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Market

David Ezeh asks to leave HJK

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Transfer targets

HJK ask about Lucas Cuffia

A loan enquiry to Colón: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at HJK

6 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Pyry Mentu

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

Liam Möller has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

The dugout

Till Cissokho asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

In brief

34 Edition

The HJK Courier

22 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

HJK break the bank for Egas Cacintura

$10.2M. No player has ever cost HJK more, and expectation arrives with him.

Squad

Lucas Lingman breaks a bone — 28 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 28 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

HJK turn down Inter Turku for Jere Kallinen

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

KuPS watching Pyry Mentu

The interest is real enough to have reached print. HJK have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.

The terraces

HJK spend $10.2M on the signing the town wanted

It is the rarest sequence in football: supporters ask for something, and the club goes and does it. $10.2M for Egas Cacintura, and for one week nobody is complaining about anything.

Squad

HJK count the cost of losing Vincent Ulundu

24 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Squad

Egas Cacintura has outgrown this division

There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. HJK know it, and so does everybody who watches him.

Market

Joona Veteli is free to find somewhere else

“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at HJK has been clear about where Joona Veteli stands, which is more than many ever get.

In brief

33 Edition

The HJK Courier

15 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

35 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Transfer targets

HJK make their move for Egas Cacintura

$10.2M on the table at Akhmat Grozny. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.

Market

Till Cissokho hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what HJK can pretend not to have heard.

Market

HJK turn down SJK for Pyry Mentu

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Transfer targets

Colón tell HJK: Lucas Cuffia is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad

This league is too small for Matías Bergara

He is doing things on a Saturday afternoon that nobody around him can answer, which is flattering for about one season and a problem after that. HJK will not keep him by pretending otherwise.

The dugout

Joakim Nilsson is still paying for one afternoon at HJK

Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.

In brief

32 Edition

The HJK Courier

8 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

44 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Market

SJK come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and HJK did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Transfer targets

Matías Contrera due for a HJK medical

Everything agreed with Shrewsbury Town, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.

Market

HJK get their man

The chase for Vincent Ulundu ended with $440.0K changing hands and Inter Turku out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.

Squad

Alexander Ring stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Alexander Ring and HJK agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Freddy Noguera

HJK asked and Cerro Porteno said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Market

Inter Turku watching Jere Kallinen

The interest is real enough to have reached print. HJK have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.

In brief

31 Edition

The HJK Courier

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Lucas Lingman out for 51 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason HJK will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets

No deal for Oskari Väistö at that price

HJK offered $190.0K; SJK said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Transfer targets

VPS tell HJK: Jayden Turfkruier is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Market

SJK join the queue for Mouhamed Guèye

Add another name to the list: SJK have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Mouhamed Guèye. The answer from HJK has not changed — yet.

Transfer targets

HJK try to borrow Matías Bergara

Nueva Chicago have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.

The dugout

When it matters, Liam Möller plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

Squad

A season on the outside for Joakim Nilsson

He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at HJK has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.

Market

The Santeri Haarala question follows HJK around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Santeri Haarala’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

In brief

30 Edition

The HJK Courier

22 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Lucas Lingman breaks a bone — 59 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 59 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Transfer targets

HJK rebuffed over Markus Arsalo

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. SJK have kept their man, and HJK go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Transfer targets

No deal for Aapo Boström at that price

HJK offered $750.0K; SJK said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Transfer targets

HJK bid $300.0K for Vincent Ulundu

The offer went to Inter Turku this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

HJK count the cost of losing Joona Veteli

35 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Lucas Lingman

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

The dugout

Nikolai Alho has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

29 Edition

The HJK Courier

15 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Lucas Lingman breaks a bone — 68 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 68 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Transfer targets

HJK rebuffed over Jaime Moreno

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. KuPS have kept their man, and HJK go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Transfer targets

No deal for Niilo Kujasalo at that price

HJK offered $1.4M; KuPS said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.

Transfer targets

An offer of $700.0K for Aapo Boström

HJK have gone to SJK with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Market

Oliver Pettersson comes home

The shirt still fits. Oliver Pettersson is back at HJK, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Transfer targets

An offer of $140.0K for Oskari Väistö

HJK have gone to SJK with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

Joakim Nilsson is still being punished for one mistake

Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.

In brief

28 Edition

The HJK Courier

8 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Lucas Lingman out for 75 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason HJK will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Transfer targets

HJK make their move for Niilo Kujasalo

$1.4M on the table at KuPS. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.

Transfer targets

An offer of $340.0K for Oliver Pettersson

HJK have gone to Ilves with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Transfer targets

Door shut on Vincent Ulundu

HJK asked and Inter Turku said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kaius Simojoki is on it.

Boardroom

The window opens at HJK

A month in which every rumour is possible and most of them are nonsense. The manager has a list, the board has a number, and neither is telling the other the whole of it.

The dugout

Lassi Lappalainen has been promised minutes

A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Lassi Lappalainen has written the date down.

The dugout

Mouhamed Guèye knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Mouhamed Guèye trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

In brief

27 Edition

The HJK Courier

1 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

82 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Joakim Nilsson falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

No hiding place for Pyry Mentu

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Pyry Mentu, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Liam Möller has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lucas Lingman trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

In brief

26 Edition

The HJK Courier

25 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

89 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

HJK count the cost of losing Joona Veteli

66 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

The dugout

Nikolai Alho gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nikolai Alho is on it.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at HJK, and both men came out saying it was fine.

In brief

25 Edition

The HJK Courier

18 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Lucas Lingman breaks a bone — 98 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 98 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Mouhamed Guèye signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Mouhamed Guèye commits to HJK for another 4 years.

In brief

24 Edition

The HJK Courier

11 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

105 days out for Lucas Lingman after a fracture

A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. HJK will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

The dugout

The manager makes Till Cissokho a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at HJK. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

In brief

  • The dugout Liam Möller keeps his manager's vote
  • Squad Pyry Mentu is training like a man with a point to make
23 Edition

The HJK Courier

4 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Lucas Lingman out for 113 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason HJK will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

The armband comes off Lassi Lappalainen

HJK will explain it as a decision about the team, and it may well be one. A dressing room has never once read it that way.

The dugout

When it matters, Liam Möller plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

Market

The Santeri Haarala question follows HJK around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Santeri Haarala’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

In brief

22 Edition

The HJK Courier

28 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Lucas Lingman out for 120 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason HJK will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Alexander Ring and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

The dugout

When it matters, Nikolai Alho plays

It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.

In brief

21 Edition

The HJK Courier

21 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Lucas Lingman out for 128 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason HJK will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

Till Cissokho gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

Joakim Nilsson is still paying for one afternoon at HJK

Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.

The dugout

Matej Marković gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Matej Marković is on it.

In brief

20 Edition

The HJK Courier

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

HJK count the cost of losing Iivo Nybäck

14 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

No hiding place for David Ezeh

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to David Ezeh, and the manager let it.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Kaius Simojoki was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lucas Lingman trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kaius Simojoki is on it.

In brief

19 Edition

The HJK Courier

7 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

The dugout

Pyry Mentu: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” HJK have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Lassi Lappalainen commits to HJK for another 4 years.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

A promotion for Till Cissokho

Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Till Cissokho has moved up it.

The dugout

Liam Möller has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lucas Lingman trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Market

The Santeri Haarala question follows HJK around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Santeri Haarala’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

Squad

A wage question at HJK

Santeri Haarala has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.

The dugout

The manager makes Till Cissokho a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at HJK. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

In brief

18 Edition

The HJK Courier

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

Lucas Lingman gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

In brief

17 Edition

The HJK Courier

23 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Mihailo Bogićević has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around HJK they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Joakim Nilsson falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

Joona Veteli signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Joona Veteli and HJK agree another 2 years.

The dugout

The manager has not finished forgetting Joakim Nilsson's mistake

Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.

The dugout

Matej Marković has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

16 Edition

The HJK Courier

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Alfie Cicale falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Alfie Cicale gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

Lassi Lappalainen knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lassi Lappalainen trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout

Roni Hudd gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Roni Hudd is on it.

Squad

International call for Santeri Haarala

Santeri Haarala joins up with his country. HJK lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.

In brief

15 Edition

The HJK Courier

9 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Alexander Ring was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Lucas Lingman signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Lucas Lingman and HJK agree another 4 years.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

No hiding place for Lassi Lappalainen

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Lassi Lappalainen, and the manager let it.

Market

HJK and Lucas Lingman are talking past each other

“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.

The dugout

Liam Möller has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

14 Edition

The HJK Courier

2 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Only the photograph left for Emmanuel Boateng

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Emmanuel Boateng will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around HJK the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Lucas Lingman stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Lucas Lingman and HJK agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Market

Still no ink between HJK and Lassi Lappalainen

“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at HJK, another week without a signature from Lassi Lappalainen.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Liam Möller

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

In brief

13 Edition

The HJK Courier

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

The small margins put HJK out

Out, 1‑1 to KuPS, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.

Player ratings

Alfie Cicale runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Market

Mihailo Bogićević is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at HJK is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Match

The wait goes on for HJK

4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Player ratings

Lucas Lingman fails from the spot

Twelve yards and the whole ground holding its breath, and it did not go in. He will put his name down for the next one, which is the only thing to do.

Squad

Mihailo Bogićević falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Joakim Nilsson is still paying for one afternoon at HJK

Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Daniel Raitala and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

The dugout

No place for David Ezeh on the big day

He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at HJK pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.

In brief

  • The dugout Matej Marković has become a man the manager trusts
  • The dugout The view from the dugout
  • The terraces Everybody has an opinion about Joakim Nilsson
12 Edition

The HJK Courier

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Lucas Lingman has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around HJK they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

Squad

Jasper Samooja is a better footballer than he was

Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 23 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The dugout

David Ezeh knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at HJK, and both men came out saying it was fine.

The dugout

Roni Hudd has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

11 Edition

The HJK Courier

12 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Only the photograph left for Liam Möller

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Liam Möller will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around HJK the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Squad

Joakim Nilsson wants to go home

“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at HJK can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Joakim Nilsson is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Market

The Santeri Haarala question follows HJK around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Santeri Haarala’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kaius Simojoki is on it.

Squad

International call for Teemu Pukki

Teemu Pukki joins up with his country. HJK lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.

Market

Still no signature from Lucas Lingman

2 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what HJK could get for him.

The dugout

A door opens for Lucas Lingman

He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.

In brief

10 Edition

The HJK Courier

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Till Cissokho has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around HJK they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Lassi Lappalainen

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

Words at HJK training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mihailo Bogićević is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at HJK

11 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.

The dugout

Liam Möller has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at HJK will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

9 Edition

The HJK Courier

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Mihailo Bogićević is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at HJK is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Joakim Nilsson falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The dugout

Alfie Cicale gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

The dugout

Lassi Lappalainen knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lassi Lappalainen trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout

Martin Kirilov gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Martin Kirilov is on it.

In brief

8 Edition

The HJK Courier

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Lucas Lingman is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at HJK is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Squad

Alexander Ring in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

Lassi Lappalainen knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Lassi Lappalainen trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout

Roni Hudd gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Roni Hudd is on it.

Market

Still no signature from Mihailo Bogićević

2 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what HJK could get for him.

In brief

7 Edition

The HJK Courier

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Liam Möller has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around HJK they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mihailo Bogićević was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout

No hiding place for Mihailo Bogićević

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mihailo Bogićević, and the manager let it.

Market

HJK and Lucas Lingman are talking past each other

“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.

Squad

Joakim Nilsson still has not settled

A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at HJK would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.

Market

The Santeri Haarala question follows HJK around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Santeri Haarala’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

The dugout

Kaius Simojoki gets picked when it counts

Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kaius Simojoki is on it.

The dugout

The manager makes Lucas Lingman a promise

Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at HJK. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.

Market

Still no signature from Lucas Lingman

3 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what HJK could get for him.

In brief

6 Edition

The HJK Courier

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Alfie Cicale

Successful dribbles: 29. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Market

Till Cissokho is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at HJK is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match

Mads Borchers’s goal not enough for HJK

Mads Borchers scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to SJK, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.

Transfer targets

Estudiantes tell HJK: Ian Vera is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Lassi Lappalainen

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

Nikolai Alho is no longer first choice

The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Nikolai Alho has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.

Market

HJK and Lassi Lappalainen are talking past each other

“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.

In brief

5 Edition

The HJK Courier

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Matej Marković is the hero from the spot

A shoot-out is remembered by its ending, and this one ends with Matej Marković: 2 kept out, and a set of supporters who will describe every one of them for the next twenty years.

Match

HJK march on in the cup

Ilves are out and HJK go through, 1‑1 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Alfie Cicale

Successful dribbles: 27. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Market

Only the photograph left for Mihailo Bogićević

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Mihailo Bogićević will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around HJK the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Boardroom

HJK to lose Emmanuel Boateng for free

There is no worse way to lose a footballer. Emmanuel Boateng has pre-agreed a move away, which means every appearance between now and June is made by a man the club can no longer sell, and somebody upstairs will be asked why the contract was allowed to get here.

Squad

Tempers go at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Joakim Nilsson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom

HJK beat the market to Johan Brunell from FF Jaro

FF Jaro will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Johan Brunell has pre-agreed a move to HJK, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.

Transfer targets

HJK rebuffed over Lautaro Taboada

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Cardiff City have kept their man, and HJK go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

In brief

4 Edition

The HJK Courier

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Player ratings

Jere Kallinen was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 40. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Match

HJK march on in the cup

RoPS are out and HJK go through, 5‑3 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.

Match

HJK march on in the cup

RoPS are out and HJK go through, 2‑1 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.

Player ratings

A brace, and Teemu Pukki takes the afternoon — 9.20

There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Teemu Pukki provided it, and the 9.20 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Martin Kirilov at 19 — 8.38

The hardest thing about being 19 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Martin Kirilov did not need any: 8.38, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Market

Lucas Lingman has one foot out of the door

Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around HJK they have already started talking about him in the past tense.

Player ratings

A defender's goal wins it for HJK — 7.47

1 for Lucas Lingman, marked 7.47, and a centre-half's name in the part of the report he normally only reaches by mistake. He will not be allowed to forget it in the dressing room for a month.

Boardroom

Till Cissokho has agreed to leave HJK for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Squad

Words exchanged at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.

In brief

3 Edition

The HJK Courier

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Lassi Lappalainen was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 29. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.

Squad

Matej Marković keeps HJK in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Market

HJK say no — this time

The offer from KTP for Mihailo Bogićević was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Market

Liam Möller is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at HJK is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Boardroom

Deadline passes with 12 signed and 2 gone

That is the business done at HJK until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.

Squad

Nikolai Alho pulls a muscle — 16 days out

The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 16 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.

Boardroom

Mihailo Bogićević has agreed to leave HJK for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Lassi Lappalainen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Market

HJK sell Ville Tikkanen for $200.0K

Ville Tikkanen has left for FF Jaro in a $200.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.

In brief

2 Edition

The HJK Courier

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Market

HJK say no — this time

The offer from VPS for Ville Tikkanen was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Player ratings

Teemu Pukki, 36, rolls back the years — 7.98

There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 7.98 at 36, and nobody on the pitch was better.

Transfer targets

Matías Espíndola due for a HJK medical

Everything agreed with Deportivo Maldonado, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.

Transfer targets

Bruno Miño turns down HJK

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Almirante Brown keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Boardroom

Lucas Lingman has agreed to leave HJK for nothing

He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.

Squad

A falling-out at HJK

Alexander Ring and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Lassi Lappalainen was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Transfer targets

Palermo tell HJK: Giacomo Corona is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Market

HJK promote Oliver Granlund from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Oliver Granlund has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

In brief

1 Edition

The HJK Courier

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Nikolai Alho runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 28. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Teemu Pukki signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Teemu Pukki commits to HJK for another 2 years.

Squad

Lassi Lappalainen in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at HJK this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Inter Turku take the points off HJK

Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

Matej Marković gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

A row about effort at HJK

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mads Borchers was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Market

HJK and Lassi Lappalainen are talking past each other

“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.

Market

The clock runs on Matej Marković's contract

36 months left and silence from upstairs — no offer, no talks, nothing for his people to answer. Clubs that let a calendar do their negotiating usually end up negotiating with the calendar.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at HJK

12 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.

In brief