Veikkausliiga Recap: KuPS’s Lead Narrowed to One Point Following Ilves’ Strong Performance in Kuopio

What once seemed like a comfortable lead for KuPS at the summit of the Veikkausliiga has diminished to a mere single point, following their home defeat to Ilves, who secured a 3-0 victory in Kuopio.

KuPS now finds themselves with three losses and a draw in their last four league fixtures, having not found the back of the net in any of those games. They fell behind in this encounter just after the half-hour mark, when Anton Popovitch headed in from a corner.

Before the interval, Ilves extended their lead to 2-0 with a penalty by Jardell Kanga, and early in the second half, Adeleke Akinyemi added a third after seizing on a through ball from Kanga.

This result puts Ilves on a four-match unbeaten streak and on 22 points, just one point behind KuPS but with a game in hand.

The Tampere outfit have now leapfrogged Inter Turku, who, despite remaining unbeaten, missed the chance to top the table after a 1-1 draw at home against Haka.

Bismark Ampofo put Inter on course for what they hoped would be a fourth consecutive win within the first 15 minutes, only for Simon Lindholm to equalise early in the second half.

Ilves and Inter are now separated only by goal difference, while Haka has dropped to eighth place despite still being unbeaten in their last three matches.

HJK is now just three points adrift of the top position following a solid 4-0 victory away against bottom-placed AC Oulu.

Benji Michel ignited the scoring midway through the first half, and the Helsinki side capitalised on a counterattack 20 minutes from time, allowing Teemu Pukki to assist Alexander Ring for the second goal.

Liam Moller rounded the goalkeeper before serving up a simple finish for Georgios Kanellopoulos, and Michael Boamah capped off the dominance in stoppage time.

After enduring seven matches in the Veikkausliiga without a victory, SJK finally secured a vital three points by defeating Jaro 3-1 at home, ensuring they remain in fifth place, while their opponents have now gone five league matches without a win.

Rasmus Karjalainen converted a penalty for the hosts in the 11th minute, and Kasper Paananen added a second goal within the first half hour.

Kerfala Cissoko set up a tense finish by scoring three minutes from time, but Jeremiah Streng restored a two-goal advantage in the dying moments.

It was a different story for VPS and Mariehamn, who entered their encounter separated by just three points, only for VPS to demonstrate their superiority with a comprehensive 5-1 away win.

Olli Jakonen netted the only goal of the first half, with Maissa Fall and Jakonen adding to their tally to put VPS firmly in control. Prosper Ahiabu made it 4-0, and although Emmanuel Okereke found the net for Mariehamn, Fall added his second goal late in the game.

VPS maintains their sixth position, while Mariehamn remains ninth, suffering a setback in their goal difference.

Lastly, two goals from Joakim Latonen propelled Gnistan to a 2-1 victory over KTP in Helsinki.

The visitors took the lead in the first half with a strike from Petteri Forsell, but Latonen found the net in the 65th and 92nd minutes to turn the match around. Gnistan rises to seventh place, while KTP lingers just above the bottom of the table.