Mika_Ääritalo
Mika Ääritalo
Finnish footballer (born 1985)
Mika Ääritalo (born 25 July 1985) is a Finnish former professional footballer who played as a forward. He made six appearances for the Finland national team scoring once.
 |
 Ääritalo in Turku 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1985-07-25) 25 July 1985 (age 38) | ||
| Place of birth | Taivassalo, Finland | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2003 | TPS Turku | 5 | (0) |
| 2003–2005 | Aston Villa | 0 | (0) |
| 2005–2015 | TPS Turku | 196 | (47) |
| 2014 | → Holstein Kiel (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | FC Lahti | 24 | (4) |
| 2016 | KuPS | 30 | (0) |
| 2017–2020 | TPS Turku | 91 | (17) |
| Total | 352 | (68) | |
| International career | |||
| 2010–2012 | Finland | 6 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
After beginning his senior career in 2002 with hometown club TPS Turku,[1] English Premiership side Aston Villa beat a host of clubs from across Europe to the signing of Ääritalo in January 2003.[2] After failing to make a first-team appearance for Aston Villa, Ääritalo returned to his first club, TPS Turku, in February 2005.
In June 2008, Portuguese BWINLIGA club C.D. Nacional were interested in signing Ääritalo, but the deal fell through due to cost and the fact that Ääritalo did not want to move to Portugal.[3]
In January 2014, he joined the German 3. Liga side Holstein Kiel on a six-month loan. He later played for Turun Palloseura, FC Lahti and Kuopion Palloseura.[4]
Ääritalo made his international debut for the Finland national team in 2010.[5] He scored his first international goal on 22 January 2012, in a friendly against Trinidad and Tobago.
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | 2010 | 1 | 0 |
| 2011 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 2 | 1 | |
| Total | 6 | 1 | |
- Score and result list Finland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after Ääritalo's goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 January 2012 | Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago |  Trinidad and Tobago | 3−2 | 3−2 | Friendly |
- "Veikkausliiga statistics" (in Finnish). Veikkausliiga official website. Archived from the original on 18 November 2007.
- "Villa snap up teenage star". BBC Sport. 18 October 2002. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- Jari Welling (15 June 2008). "Nacional tekemässä TPS:lleuuden tarjouksen" (in Finnish). Turun Sanomat. Retrieved 16 November 2010.
- "Liigadebytantti pääsi helpolla - KuPS puolusti pisteen". Yle Urheilu (in Finnish). 3 July 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- Mika Ääritalo at National-Football-Teams.com
Media related to Mika Ääritalo at Wikimedia Commons- Mika Ääritalo at Soccerway
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