Mikael Soisalo
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Mikael Soisalo[1] | ||
Date of birth | 24 April 1998 | ||
Place of birth | Helsinki, Finland | ||
Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in) | ||
Position(s) | Right-winger | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Puskás Akadémia | ||
Number | 20 | ||
Youth career | |||
2002–2012 | Honka | ||
2012–2015 | HJK | ||
2017–2018 | Middlesbrough | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2015 | Klubi 04 | 4 | (0) |
2016 | Ilves | 31 | (7) |
2017–2018 | Middlesbrough | 0 | (0) |
2018–2020 | Zulte Waregem | 32 | (1) |
2021 | → Varzim (loan) | 2 | (0) |
2021–2023 | Riga FC | 67 | (16) |
2023– | Puskás Akadémia | 35 | (2) |
International career‡ | |||
2013–2014 | Finland U16 | 8 | (1) |
2014–2015 | Finland U17 | 13 | (2) |
2016 | Finland U18 | 10 | (3) |
2016–2017 | Finland U19 | 6 | (2) |
2017–2020 | Finland U21 | 20 | (2) |
2022– | Finland | 4 | (0) |
Medal record | |||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 December 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 November 2022 |
Mikael Soisalo (born 24 April 1998) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a right-winger for Hungarian club Puskás Akadémia. He has also represented the Finland national under-21 football team.[2] Soisalo was born in Helsinki, Finland. He began his senior club career on league level playing for Ilves, before signing with Zulte Waregem at age 20 in 2018.[3]
Club career
[edit]Klubi 04
[edit]He started his career playing for in the lower leagues of Finnish football in HJKs reserve team.[4] He has also played for the junior teams of Finland national football team.[citation needed]
Ilves
[edit]On 14 December 2015 it was announced he had joined Ilves a team from Tampere on a 3-year contract.[5]
He stated that his goal for the 2016 Veikkausliiga (Finnish 1 tier) season would be to get a start in the starting line-up.[5] He played an active role in the team's success, they finished fourth in the league and at times they even fought for the championship.[4]
Middlesbrough
[edit]On 5 January 2017, Soisalo joined Middlesbrough on a three-year deal for an undisclosed fee, reported to be around €200,000, and was registered to their U21 academy squad.[6][7]
On 13 March 2017, he scored a hat-trick for the Middlesbrough reserves against Blackburn reserves. The manager praised him for his performance and how he had integrated into the team.[8]
Zulte Waregem
[edit]On 18 June 2018, Middlesbrough announced that Soisalo was to join Belgian side Zulte Waregem after just one full season with Middlesbrough's U-23 side.[9] The transfer fee was not disclosed.
Varzim (loan)
Soisalo was loaned out to Portuguese club Varzim S.C. on 29 January 2020 for the rest of the season with a purchase option.[10] However, he only played two games for the club and returned to Zulte in the summer 2020.
Riga FC
[edit]For the 2021 season, Soisalo moved to Riga FC on a 2-year contract. He made his debut on 13 March, playing the first 65 minutes of a 0–2 win at Ventspils.[11] He had an impressive start and had scored seven goals in 15 games in July 2021.[12]
Puskás Akadémia
[edit]On 27 August 2023, Soisalo was bought by Hungarian top-flight club Puskás Akadémia for an undisclosed fee.[13] He scored in his debut, in a 3–1 away victory against Mezőkövesd on 3 September 2023.
International career
[edit]He has been an integral part of the various youth national teams starting from the U-15. During 2016, he took part in Finland's qualifying campaign for the UEFA under 19 Championship. He played well against Kazakhstan, scoring once and assisting three goals.[4] He scored his first goal for Finland U21 on 9 October 2020 in a UEFA European U21 Championship qualification match in Ballymena Showgrounds, Ballymena against Northern Ireland U21.[14]
In March 2022, Soisalo received a first call up for the Finland senior squad for the first time, coming into the squad after the withdrawal of Lassi Lappalainen and Onni Valakari for matches against Iceland and Slovakia.[15]
Career statistics
[edit]Club
[edit]- As of 21 December 2024[12]
Club | Season | League | Cup[a] | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Klubi 04 | 2015 | Kakkonen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||
Ilves | 2016 | Veikkausliiga | 31 | 7 | 5 | 4 | — | — | 36 | 11 | ||
Zulte Waregem | 2018–19 | Belgian First Division A | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 8[b] | 0 | 28 | 1 | |
2019–20 | Belgian First Division A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
2020–21 | Belgian First Division A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
Total | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 32 | 1 | ||
Varzim (loan) | 2019–20 | LigaPro | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
Riga FC | 2021 | Virslīga | 19 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 8[c] | 1 | — | 29 | 9 | |
2022 | Virslīga | 27 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 6[d] | 2 | — | 34 | 6 | ||
2023 | Virslīga | 21 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 5[d] | 0 | — | 26 | 4 | ||
Total | 67 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 89 | 19 | ||
Puskás Akadémia | 2023–24 | NB I | 18 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 20 | 3 | |
2024–25 | NB I | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4[e] | 2 | – | 23 | 2 | ||
Total | 35 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 5 | ||
Career total | 162 | 26 | 12 | 5 | 23 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 205 | 36 |
- ^ Includes Suomen Cup, Latvian Cup and Hungarian Cup
- ^ Appearances in the Belgian Europa League play-offs
- ^ Includes two appearances in the UEFA Champions League, and six appearances in the UEFA Europa Conference League
- ^ a b Includes UEFA Europa Conference League
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Conference League
International
[edit]- As of match played on 4 June 2024.
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Finland | 2022 | 4 | 0 |
Total | 4 | 0 |
Honours
[edit]Klubi 04
Riga FC
- Latvian Higher League runner-up: 2022
Individual
- Veikkausliiga Breakthrough of the Year: 2016[16]
- Veikkausliiga Team of the Year: 2016[17]
References
[edit]- ^ "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2018: Middlesbrough" (PDF). English Football League. p. 23. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- ^ "Mikael Soisalo" (in Finnish). Football Association of Finland. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ "Ilveksessä loistanut Mikael Soisalo hehkuttaa siirtoaan Belgian liigaan: "Seuraava tavoitteeni on miesten maajoukkue"" [Mikael Soisalo, who had great performance in Ilves, celebrates his move to the Belgian league: "My next goal is the men's national team"] (in Finnish). Aamulehti. 17 June 2018. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ a b c "Ilves-tähti Soisalo aikoo kaataa tänään vanhan seuransa: "Jos saan kunnon syöttöjä, teen maalin" - Aamulehti". Archived from the original on 21 December 2016.
- ^ a b "Ilves nappasi HJK-lupauksen – "Poikkeuksellinen pelaaja"". 14 December 2015.
- ^ "Finnish Forward Joins Middlesbrough Academy". Middlesbrough F.C. 5 January 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
- ^ DONE DEAL! Middlesbrough sign 18-year-old Finnish starlet Mikael Soisalo, 5 January 2017, talksport.com
- ^ Jonathan Taylor (14 March 2017). "Introducing Mikael Soisalo: Middlesbrough Academy's hot prospect from a cold country". Teesside Gazette. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
- ^ "Mikael Soisalo Set To Join Zulte Waregem". mfc.co.uk. Middlesbrough F.C. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
- ^ Soisalo é reforço do Varzim, varzim.pt, 29 January 2020
- ^ "FK Ventspils vs Riga FC: Live score, updates and head-to-head results 03/13/2021". tribuna.com. 13 March 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
- ^ a b "Finland - M. Soisalo - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway".
- ^ "MTV Urheilun tiedot: Huuhkajista tuttu hyökkääjä sai kovan siirron Euroopassa".
- ^ "Pikkuhuuhkajat hienoon voittoon Pohjois-Irlannissa" [Little Eagle Owls win a great victory in Northern Ireland] (in Finnish). Veikkausliiga. 9 October 2020. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
- ^ "Muutoksia Huuhkajien leiriryhmään" [Changes to the Owl Camp Group]. www.palloliitto.fi (in Finnish). 18 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
- ^ "Kauden parhaita palkittiin Captain's Ballissa". www.veikkausliiga.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ "Koplajoukkue 2016 palkittiin päätöskierroksella". www.veikkausliiga.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 2 January 2023.
External links
[edit]- SV Zulte Waregem official profile
- Mikael Soisalo – SPL competition record
- Mikael Soisalo at Soccerway
- 1998 births
- Living people
- Men's association football forwards
- Finnish men's footballers
- 21st-century Finnish sportsmen
- Finnish expatriate men's footballers
- Finland men's under-21 international footballers
- Finland men's youth international footballers
- Kakkonen players
- Veikkausliiga players
- Belgian Pro League players
- Liga Portugal 2 players
- Latvian Higher League players
- Nemzeti Bajnokság I players
- Ilves (football) players
- Middlesbrough F.C. players
- S.V. Zulte Waregem players
- Varzim S.C. players
- Riga FC players
- Puskás Akadémia FC players
- Footballers from Helsinki
- Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium
- Expatriate men's footballers in England
- Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal
- Expatriate men's footballers in Latvia
- Expatriate men's footballers in Hungary
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in England
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Belgium
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Latvia
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Hungary