Veikkausliiga Recap: Inter Turku Remains Unbeaten with First Victory in Three Matches

KuPS’ unexpected draw with AC Oulu on Friday opened the door for Inter Turku to claim the top spot in the table with a victory over Haka on Sunday. A solitary goal was all they needed to ascend to the summit on goal difference.

Although Inter Turku remained unbeaten this season, claiming victory against a Haka side sitting in 10th place was not guaranteed, especially given that they had drawn three of their past four matches, including the last two.

After dominating the early phases of the match, Inter took control midway through the first half when Joonas Kekarainen seized on a weak clearance just outside the box.

He unleashed a shot from 20 yards which was redirected past the outstretched arms of the goalkeeper by teammate Dimitri Legbo, marking his third goal in four outings.

The remainder of the first half and the early moments of the second half were largely controlled by Haka, yet visiting goalkeeper Eetu Huutanen proved to be a formidable barrier, thwarting every attempt they made.

Inter had opportunities to secure a more comfortable lead as the match progressed, even earning a penalty with ten minutes left after Nikolas Talo was penalised for handball. However, Haka’s goalkeeper Liam Hughes brilliantly saved Bart Straalman’s lacklustre penalty attempt.

Ultimately, this miss did not prove detrimental to Turku, who secured a narrow 1-0 victory to bring their points tally to 30, boasting a goal difference eight better than that of KuPS, along with two games in hand.

The draw between KuPS and Oulu saw the latter rise off the bottom of the table for the first time since the season’s early weeks, only to fall back to 12th on Monday after KTP managed a goalless draw against Gnistan.

While the home side enjoyed more possession and created more chances, they failed to convert against Gnistan, who remain winless in their last four matches. Although KTP possesses the league’s most porous defence, they now also have two clean sheets to their credit.

On Sunday, Kerfala Cissoko, the top scorer in Veikkausliiga, reached double digits in the league and 12 in all competitions as he put Jaro ahead against Mariehamn.

He has netted 10 out of the 16 goals his team has scored in the top tier, but even this impressive tally wasn’t enough for three points, as Korede Adedoyin equalised for the visitors early in the second half.

The 1-1 draw lifts Jaro to ninth place, just a point and a position below Mariehamn.