HJK Helsinki advanced to the profitable group stage of the Europa League | News
Reaching the group stage of Europe’s second largest club competition is a rare achievement for a Finnish football club.
HJK Helsinki secured their place in the UEFA Europa League group stage after playing a 1-1 draw with Danish side Silkeborg on Thursday evening.
The match was played in two parts, and HJK advanced thanks to a 1-0 win in the first part played in Helsinki last week.
In Thursday’s second leg, a sensational long-distance goal from the Ghanaian striker Malik Abubakari gave HJK a 1-0 lead just before Halftime and stretched their lead to two goals in the tie. Although Silkeborg equalized in the second half, the Finnish champions resisted heavy late pressure from the home side to reach the next stage.
Reaching the group stage of Europe’s second biggest club competition is a rare achievement for a Finnish football club, and it has only been achieved once before – with HJK in 2014-2015.
This increases the chances of big teams such as Manchester United, Arsenal, Roma or Lazio possibly playing in Helsinki this fall.
Head coach of HJK Toni Koskela — a self-confessed Manchester United fan — told Yle which team he would prefer to win in Friday’s draw.
“I’ve been a big Man U fan for a long time. Of course, it would be great if we got United in the draw. At the same time, of course, it’s sad for the fan. Manchester United is a club. I hope to see a game in the Champions League,” Koskela said.
In addition to the appreciation of playing in the group stage, HJK also expects a participation fee of more than 3.5 million euros. In addition, a group win would bring HJK more than 600,000 euros and a draw around 210,000 euros.
The draw was made on Friday afternoon, and HJK were placed in Group C with Italy’s Roma, Bulgaria’s Ludogorets and Spain’s Real Betis.