Jacob Friis’ inaugural squad selection as manager of the Finland national team brought few surprises, as he gears up for his first fixtures in charge against Malta and Lithuania later this month.
The squad, which marks the commencement of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, includes only one fresh face: Ville Tikkanen, who recently joined HJK. The centre-back will be hoping to earn his first cap.
Among those returning to the fold are goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo, defenders Adam Stahl, Leo Vaisanen, and forward Fredrik Jensen, all of whom participated in the UEFA Nations League (UNL) campaign towards the end of 2024.
Friis previously worked with Jensen during his time as an assistant coach at Augsburg before taking over the helm of the Finnish team.
Noah Pallas, a full-back at Valerenga who last featured for the national side in 2023, has also received a recall after a defensive cover was deemed necessary due to Arttu Hoskonen’s injury.
A number of seasoned players in the Eagle-Owls’ setup, including captain Lukas Hradecky, Jere Uronen, Glen Kamara, Joel Pohjanpalo, Robin Lod, and top-scorer Teemu Pukki, will all be part of the squad.
The Danish coach, Friis, will be looking to break a troubling streak of six consecutive losses that saw Finland relegated from UNL League B.
With no wins in their last eight matches, the Finns have not celebrated a victory since March 26, 2024, when they defeated Estonia 2-1.
As they prepare for challenging fixtures against Poland and either Spain or the Netherlands in World Cup qualifying Group G, securing wins this month is crucial for Finland’s hopes of reaching the tournaments in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
The campaign kicks off away to Malta on March 21st, with kick-off scheduled for 20:45 CET at the National Stadium in Ta’Qali.
Next up, they will face Lithuania at the Darius and Girenas Stadium in Kaunas at 18:00 CET on March 24th, marking the second of two away matches to start the Friis era.
The full Finland squad is as follows:
Goalkeepers: Lukas Hradecky, Jesse Joronen, Viljami Sinisalo
Defenders: Robert Ivanov, Miro Tenho, Daniel O’Shaughnessy, Ville Tikkanen, Leo Vaisanen, Jere Uronen, Tuomas Ollila, Noah Pallas, Nikolai Alho, Adam Stahl
Midfielders: Kaan Kairinen, Glen Kamara, Matti Peltola, Rasmus Schuller, Anssi Suhonen
Forwards: Robin Lod, Oliver Antman, Fredrik Jensen, Benjamin Kallman, Joel Pohjanpalo, Teemu Pukki, Daniel Hakans
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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