Jukka Raitala

Jukka Raitala

Raitala with the Columbus Crew in 2017
Personal information
Full name	Jukka Raitala
Date of birth	(1988-09-15) 15 September 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth	Kerava, Finland
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s)	Defender
Team information
Current team	Gnistan
Number	22
Youth career
1995–2005	Keravan Pallo-75
2005–2006	HJK
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2006	Klubi 04	22	(0)
2007–2009	HJK	66	(0)
2009–2010	→ TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (loan)	2	(0)
2010	TSG 1899 Hoffenheim II	2	(0)
2010–2012	TSG 1899 Hoffenheim	0	(0)
2010–2011	→ SC Paderborn 07 (loan)	29	(0)
2011–2012	→ Osasuna (loan)	17	(0)
2012–2015	Heerenveen	26	(1)
2015	Vestsjælland	15	(0)
2015–2016	Aalborg BK	5	(0)
2016	Sogndal	28	(1)
2017	Columbus Crew	28	(0)
2018–2020	Montreal Impact	69	(1)
2021	Minnesota United	9	(0)
2022–2023	HJK	43	(0)
2024–	Gnistan	26	(0)
International career‡
	Finland U17	2	(0)
2005–2006	Finland U19	3	(0)
2007–2010	Finland U21	19	(0)
2009–2022	Finland	61	(0)
Medal record Finland national football team Runner-up Baltic Cup 2012 Baltic Cup 2014 HJK Helsinki Winner Finnish Cup 2008 Runner-up Finnish League Cup 2009 Winner Veikkausliiga 2009
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 26 October 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:24, 22 June 2021 (UTC)

Jukka Raitala (born 15 September 1988) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays for Veikkausliiga club IF Gnistan. He usually plays as a left back in both his club side and the Finland football team but can also operate as a right back or a central defender. Raitala was born in Kerava, Finland, where he played for the local youth team before moving to HJK's youth organization.

Club career

Early career

Raitala joined the Keravan Pallo-75 junior team at the age of seven. He played there for ten years before he moved to HJK in 2005. After just one year in the youth team he was promoted to HJK's reserve team, Klubi-04. In his lone season with Klubi-04, Raitala made 22 appearances.

HJK

In 2007, he made his first appearance for the senior side at the age of eighteen and was since then a regular in the starting eleven. His success with the Finland national under-21 football team and HJK has made him a transfer target in Finland. For a long time Raitala refused to sign a new contract with HJK, but when the club left him out of the playing squad he chose to sign a new deal that kept him in Helsinki until the end of the 2011 season.

In 2008, SpVgg Greuther Fürth scouted him in Helsinki. In October 2008, Finnish sports magazine IS Veikkaaja reported that AEK Athens, Ajax and 1899 Hoffenheim are also scouting him. In Greek Day News, Raitala stated that he is interested in a move to AEK and that he is friends with AEK's Perparim Hetemaj. ^[1]

In November, West Bromwich Albion invited him for a test period after preparative negotiations with HJK. Raitala never did the trip and stated he does not want to risk playing time by moving. He wants a guarantee for his place in the 2009 Under-21 Euros team. ^[2]

In January 2009, Newcastle United invited him for a week-long trial with their first team. ^[3] It was also reported in Finnish IS Veikkaaja that Udinese Calcio and Middlesbrough F.C. are watching his progress.

In April 2009, Express.de wrote that Raitala is 1. FC Köln's top candidate to replace Pierre Womé as their left-back. ^[4] On 23 April, Express.de said that Raitala is going to meet Köln and he has an exit clause in his new contract with HJK. ^[5] This was later denied by the Finnish club.

On 21 April 2009, Raitala signed a new three-year deal with HJK. ^[6]

In May 2009, Ajax Amsterdam, PSV Eindhoven, Bayer Leverkusen, AZ Alkmaar and Bordeaux joined the race to sign Raitala. ^{[7] [8]}

1899 Hoffenheim

On 31 August, HJK announced that Raitala had joined Hoffenheim on a season-long loan deal for a €150,000 loan fee, with an option to buy him after the loan. On 15 March 2010, Raitala made his Bundesliga debut for Hoffenheim playing as a right defender against Werder Bremen. ^[9] On 1 April 2010, TSG 1899 Hoffenheim signed him for four years for an additional transfer fee of €250,000. ^[10]

On 31 August 2010, he was loaned to 2. Bundesliga side SC Paderborn 07 for one season, where he made 29 league appearances in total.

Osasuna

On 28 July 2011, he was loaned again, this time to Osasuna in Spanish La Liga, with the Spaniards having an option to buy him for €1.25 million at the end of the season. On 28 August 2011, Raitala made his La Liga debut for Osasuna playing as a left defender against Atletico Madrid. Although being a starter during the first five league matches, he has since battled for the first-choice status with local prospect Eneko Satrústegui.

SC Heerenveen

On 6 June 2012, Raitala signed a four-year contract with a Dutch Eredivisie club SC Heerenveen for a transfer fee of €800,000. ^[11] His contract was dissolved on 2 February 2015, after he had lost prospect of play time.

FC Vestsjælland & AaB

In 2015, Raitala played in Denmark. He signed a half-year contract with FC Vestsjælland on a free transfer. The club ended below the relegation zone, but the Danish media wrote that Raitala had been one of the best players in the club's weakly half year.

In the Summer of 2015, Raitala signed for one more half year with AaB. Raitala began very well, and played the first three matches and created one assist. But later was it clear that the competition on the left back-position was too strong. On 30 November 2015, announced the sports director Allan Gaarde, that Raitala had to find a new club.

On 3 December 2015 it was announced, that Raitala would leave the club at the end of the season with his contract expiring. ^[12]

Sogndal

Raitala signed with Norwegian Tippeligaen club Sogndal for the 2016 season in February 2016.

Raitala with Sogndal in 2016

MLS career

On 23 December 2016, Raitala started his journey in Major League Soccer after Columbus Crew SC acquired him through a Discovery Signing for the 2017 season. ^[13]

After one season with Columbus, on 12 December 2017, Raitala was selected by Los Angeles FC in the 2017 MLS Expansion Draft. ^[14] He was then immediately traded with fellow expansion draftee Raheem Edwards to Montreal Impact in exchange for defender Laurent Ciman. ^[15] Raitala's contract with Montreal expired at the conclusion of the 2020 season. ^[16]

On 28 January 2021, Raitala's MLS rights were traded to Minnesota United and the club subsequently signed Raitala to a new contract. ^[17]

Return to HJK

On 21 December 2021, it was announced that Raitala had returned to his first professional club HJK. ^[18]

Raitala was named the player of the year after the 2022 season, by the Finnish FA Southern district, and by the coaches of his team. ^[19]

On 8 December 2023, it was announced that Raitala will leave HJK after the season, since the club's CEO Aki Riihilahti and a new sporting director Vesa Mäki announced that they saw no future for him in the club. Raitala, the club legend, won three Finnish Championship titles with HJK (2009, 2022, 2023). ^{[20] [21]}

IF Gnistan

On 11 December 2023, a newly promoted Veikkausliiga side Gnistan from Northern Helsinki announced the signing of Raitala. ^[22]

International career

Raitala with the national team in 2011

When Raitala was 20 years old he made his Finland national team debut on 4 February 2009, in Tokyo in a friendly match against Japan when Stuart Baxter used him as a substitute. ^[23] He played his first UEFA European Championship qualification game on 3 June 2011 when Mixu Paatelainen chose him to the starting line up against San Marino in Serravalle. ^[24] During summer 2011 he established himself as a regular in the Finland national team.

He was also a regular in the Finnish under-21 team that qualified for the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship final tournament in 2009.

He was subsequently a member of the twenty-six players selected by Markku Kanerva to compete in UEFA Euro 2020, the first official international competition for the Finns. On 12 June 2021, he was a starter for Finland's first UEFA Euro 2020 match against Denmark. This encounter resulted in a 1–0 victory for Finland, but is unfortunately famous for seeing Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen's cardiac arrest. Raitala competed in Finland's all three tournament matches, against Denmark, Russia and Belgium, but eventually they were eliminated from the competition in the group stage with two losses and one win.

Raitala retired from the international football in November 2021, at the end of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, after making 63 international appearances for Finland.

Career statistics

Club

As of 26 October 2024 ^{[25] [26] [27]}

Club	Season	League			Cup [a]		Continental [b]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Klubi 04	2006	Ykkönen	22	0	–		–		–		22	0
HJK	2007	Veikkausliiga	23	0	0	0	4	0	–		27	0
	2008	Veikkausliiga	23	0	0	0	–		–		23	0
	2009	Veikkausliiga	20	0	0	0	2	0	–		22	0
	Total		66	0	0	0	6	0	0	0	72	0
TSG Hoffenheim (loan)	2009–10	Bundesliga	2	0	0	0	–		–		2	0
TSG Hoffenheim	2010–11	Bundesliga	0	0	0	0	–		–		0	0
	2011–12	Bundesliga	0	0	0	0	–		–		0	0
	Total		2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
TSG Hoffenheim II	2010–11	Regionalliga Süd	2	0	–		–		–		2	0
SC Paderborn (loan)	2010–11	2. Bundesliga	29	0	0	0	–		–		29	0
Osasuna (loan)	2011–12	La Liga	17	0	2	0	–		–		19	0
Heerenveen	2012–13	Eredivisie	18	0	2	0	3	0	2 [c]	0	25	0
	2013–14	Eredivisie	2	0	0	0	–		–		2	0
	2014–15	Eredivisie	6	1	1	0	–		–		7	1
	Total		26	1	3	0	3	0	2	0	34	1
Vestsjælland	2014–15	Danish Superliga	15	0	4	0	–		–		19	0
AaB	2015–16	Danish Superliga	5	0	1	0	–		–		6	0
Sogndal	2016	Tippeligaen	28	1	0	0	–		–		28	1
Columbus Crew	2017	MLS	28	0	0	0	2 [d]	0	–		30	0
Montreal Impact	2018	MLS	28	1	2	0	–		–		30	1
	2019	MLS	26	0	5	0	2 [e]	0	–		33	0
	2020	MLS	13	0	0	0	–		3 [f]	0	16	0
	Total		67	1	7	0	2	0	5	0	81	1
Minnesota United	2021	MLS	9	0	–		–		–		9	0
HJK	2022	Veikkausliiga	23	0	1	0	13	0	3	0	40	0
	2023	Veikkausliiga	20	0	0	0	10	0	5	0	35	0
	Total		43	0	1	0	23	0	8	0	75	0
Gnistan	2024	Veikkausliiga	26	0	0	0	3	0	–		29	0
Career total			385	3	18	0	37	0	15	0	455	3

1. Includes the Copa del Rey, KNVB Cup, Danish Cup, and Canadian Championship
2. All appearances in the UEFA Europa League
3. Appearances in the European competition play-offs
4. Appearances in the MLS Cup Playoffs
5. Includes CONCACAF Champions League
6. Includes MLS is Back

International

As of match played on 21 June 2021. ^[28]

Finland
Year	Apps	Goals
2009	1	0
2010	1	0
2011	8	0
2012	6	0
2013	6	0
2014	2	0
2015	2	0
2016	10	0
2017	3	0
2018	5	0
2019	7	0
2020	2	0
2021	8	0
Total	61	0

Honours

Club

HJK Helsinki

• Veikkausliiga: 2009, 2022, 2023
• Finnish Cup: 2008
• Finnish League Cup: 2023

Montreal Impact

• Canadian Championship: 2019 ^[29]

Individual

• 2009: Finland U21 Player of the Year ^[30]

References

1. Ράιταλα: εννοείται πως μ'ενδιαφέρει (in Greek). DayNews.gr. 12 October 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2008.^{[ dead link ‍]}
2. "Raitalan testimatka Englantiin lykkääntyi" (in Finnish). www.hjk.fi. 21 November 2008. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
3. "20 Year-Old Finnish Defender Jukka Raitala In Tyneside Trial". www.nufcblog.com. 20 January 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2009.
4. "1. FC Köln jagt Finnen-Talent" (in German). www.express.de. 4 April 2009. Archived from the original on 8 April 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
5. "FC lockt Finnen Raitala" (in German). www.express.de. 23 April 2009. Archived from the original on 26 April 2009. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
6. "Jukka Raitalalle sopimus HJK:n kanssa vuoden 2011 loppuun asti" (in Finnish). www.hjk.fi. 21 April 2009. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
7. "Bayer Leverkusen ollut myös Litmasen ja Forssellin perässä" (in Finnish). www.mtv3.fi. 5 December 2009. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
8. "AGENT: PSV WANT RAITALA". www.sportinglife.com. 19 May 2009. Archived from the original on 26 May 2024. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
9. "Jukka Raitala siirtyy Saksaan TSG Hoffenheimiin" (in Finnish). www.hjk.fi. 31 August 2009. Archived from the original on 11 September 2009. Retrieved 31 August 2009.
10. "1899 zieht Option für Raitala" (in German). Kicker. 1 April 2010. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
11. "sc Heerenveen haalt Fins international Jukka Raitala" (in Dutch). www.sc-heerenveen.nl. 6 June 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
12. "AaB siger farvel til finsk landsholdsspiller" (in Danish). bold.dk. 3 December 2015.
13. "Crew SC adds experienced European defender Jukka Raitala" . Retrieved 23 December 2016.
14. "LAFC select Tico striker, young prospects in 2017 MLS Expansion Draft". mlssoccer.com. Major League Soccer. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
15. "Impact acquires Jukka Raitala and Raheem Edwards". impactmontreal.com. Montreal Impact. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
16. "L'Impact de Montréal exerce les options de dix joueurs | CF Montréal".
17. Butler, Dylan (28 January 2021). "Minnesota United acquire veteran fullback Jukka Raitala in trade with CF Montréal". MLS Official Website. Retrieved 28 January 2021.
18. "Jukka Raitala Klubiin!". 21 December 2021.
19. Jukka Raitala ja Vesa Vasara palkittiin Palloliiton Eteläisen alueen vuoden 2022 parhaina, Veikkausliiga, 11 February 2023
20. Jukka Raitala ei jatka HJK:ssa, hjk.fi, 8 December 2023
21. ”Olin yllättynyt” – HJK:n luottopuolustaja kertoo Aki Riihilahdelta saamastaan karusta viestistä, Helsingin Sanomat, Ari Virtanen, 11 December 2023
22. JUKKA RAITALA SIIRTYY GNISTANIIN, gnistan.fi, 11 December 2023
23. "Suomelle selkäsauna Tokiossa" (in Finnish). YLE Urheilu. 4 February 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
24. "Forssell laukoi Suomelle nihkeän voiton" (in Finnish). YLE Urheilu. 3 June 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
25. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. "Jukka Raitala – National Football Teams". National Football Teams.
26. Jukka Raitala at Soccerway
27. Jukka Raitala at Major League Soccer
28. "Jukka Raitala" (in Finnish). palloliitto.fi. Archived from the original on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
29. "Montréal takes 2019 Canadian Championship title". Archived from the original on 8 October 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
30. "Jukka Raitala" (in Finnish). Suomen Palloliitto. Archived from the original on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 14 February 2015.

External links

• Jukka Raitala – UEFA competition record ( archive )
• Jukka Raitala – FIFA competition record (archived)
• Jukka Raitala at Major League Soccer
• Jukka Raitala at National-Football-Teams.com
• Jukka Raitala at Soccerbase
• Jukka Raitala at fussballdaten.de (in German)
• Jukka Raitala at Soccerway
• Voetbal International profile (in Dutch)
• Profile at FA of Finland's official website Archived 23 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine (in Finnish)
• Jukka Raitala at ESPN FC