Markku Kanerva’s debutants have fostered a remarkable team spirit and are capable of causing surprises
This article is part of the Guardian’s Euro 2020 Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 24 countries who qualified. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 11 June.
Looking back five years, there were not many signs that Finland would soon qualify for their first international tournament. The team did not win a single game in 2016 under Hans Backe, a former assistant of Sven-Göran Eriksson. After a demoralising year – two draws, nine defeats – they turned to Markku Kanerva, who had been caretaker manager twice before.
