“But I think it’s so nice that when things are going the way we are not used to, we are not alone with those thoughts and we can share them with each other. There can be some cultural differences, and it can sometimes help to talk to your Finnish friend. I feel like that helps me a lot. It can be a small thing, but it’s really nice to talk Finnish, and not to talk only English all the time!”
For both players, a big summer looms as Finland prepare to test themselves against Europe’s best in Switzerland. Saloranta’s side sit 25th in the FIFA World Ranking, having never qualified for a World Cup before, and are the lowest-ranked team in a group which features Norway, Iceland and tournament hosts Switzerland.
Having shocked the footballing world to reach the semifinals of the eight-team Euro 2005, Finland’s women hosted the 2009 tournament and made the quarterfinals — losing 3-2 to England — but have not progressed past the group stage since.
However, with four players around the squad (Linda Sällström, Emma Koivisto, Emmi Alanen, and captain Tinja-Riikka Korpela) having over a century of caps — and Natalia Kuikka (98), Adelina Engman (93), Nora Heroum (92), Ria Oling (91) and Sanni Franssi (88) not far behind — Summanen is confident that the team’s experience will stand them in good stead this summer.
“It’s going to be a big for us,” she says. “It is not our first Euros, so I feel like we’ve got that little bit of experience, and the tournament won’t come as a surprise this time. I feel like the big countries are always taking steps and, as a smaller country, we need to keep up with them. We are responsible for taking the game forward in Finland and to show the way, so when the next generation comes, they have an easier way ahead.”
At the last Euros, Finland lost to Germany, Spain and Denmark in Group B and scored only one goal, while conceding eight. But while that campaign was disappointing, the arrival of Saloranta — who replaced Anna Signeul as manager in 2023 — has helped to reinvigorate the team.
Saloranta has been involved in the Finland women’s setup since 2009 (having previously worked with the youth teams, as an assistant, and interim boss) and he has introduced a more attractive style of play, with an emphasis on ensuring the ball is moved quickly with plenty of threat from wide areas. And Ahtinen believes that the summer represents a huge opportunity to put Finnish football on the map and show they can compete.
“In 2022, everything was so new for us and I feel like we used quite a lot of energy because were there for the first time,” she says. “So this time I hope that we can enjoy it even more and I hope that we can get good results because I really believe that we have a chance to go through from our group …
“Our men’s team have been only in one Euros [in 2020], so I think the fact we have been able to do it more times is so important for the whole of Finnish football.
“I also think women’s football is growing so much in Finland, people are getting more interested, so we want to stay up there. I know other countries are progressing fast, so we need to keep up and I think that it gets harder and harder all the time. But I’m really proud of what we’ve achieved so far.”
