Alexander Ring
Encyclopedia
Alexander Ring is a Finnish
footballer currently playing for Finnish
Veikkausliiga
club HJK Helsinki
.
with his family when aged three, and grew up there. Ring went through the ranks of Bayer 04 Leverkusen before returning to Finland with his family in 2008. He signed for HJK's reserve team Klubi-04
in 2009, and represented them until being promoted to the first team, and signed full professional contract with the club in August 2010. However, Ring was loaned out to the now defunct Tampere United
for the rest of that season. He returned to HJK after the season, and was established as the first choice holding midfielder for HJK in early 2011.
On 26 September 2011 he signed a contract extension with HJK, keeping him in the Finnish capital until 2015.
and the Veikkausliiga earned him a call-up to the new coach Mixu Paatelainen
's first gathering of the Finland national football team
in May 2011. He made his senior national team debut on 7 June 2011 in 5−0 defeat against Sweden
. On 11 October 2011, Finnish star Roman Eremenko
described Ring as a soon-to-be key player in the Finland national football team
, saying: "I knew Alex when he came to the national team, but I hadn't seen any of his games before. When he came, it was immediately obvious that he is here to stay. He plays without fear."
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
footballer currently playing for Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
Veikkausliiga
Veikkausliiga
Veikkausliiga is the premier division of Finnish football, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. Veikkausliiga is currently ranked as the 28th best league in Europe. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikkaus, hence the league's name...
club HJK Helsinki
HJK Helsinki
Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi , internationally known as HJK Helsinki, is a Finnish football club, based in the capital Helsinki...
.
Club career
He moved to GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
with his family when aged three, and grew up there. Ring went through the ranks of Bayer 04 Leverkusen before returning to Finland with his family in 2008. He signed for HJK's reserve team Klubi-04
Klubi-04
Klubi 04 is the reserve team of Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi for whom a number of the players are also registered.-History:It was founded in 2004 when HJK bought FC Jokerit. Initially Klubi 04 played Kakkonen. Klubi 04 rose to Ykkönen in 2006 when it beat FC Inter's reserve team VG-62...
in 2009, and represented them until being promoted to the first team, and signed full professional contract with the club in August 2010. However, Ring was loaned out to the now defunct Tampere United
Tampere United
Tampere United is a Finnish football club, which played in the Veikkausliiga, the premier football league in Finland, until the 2010 season, but is currently excluded from participating in Finnish football. The club comes from the city of Tampere. The current head coach of the club is Jarkko Wiss,...
for the rest of that season. He returned to HJK after the season, and was established as the first choice holding midfielder for HJK in early 2011.
On 26 September 2011 he signed a contract extension with HJK, keeping him in the Finnish capital until 2015.
International career
Ring's convincing performances in the Finnish League CupFinnish League Cup
The Finnish League Cup is a knock-out football competition contested annually during pre-season in winter by teams from Veikkausliiga.-Finnish League Cup finals:...
and the Veikkausliiga earned him a call-up to the new coach Mixu Paatelainen
Mixu Paatelainen
Mika-Matti Petteri "Mixu" Paatelainen is a former Finnish international football player and the current manager of the Finnish national team, having started the role in April 2011...
's first gathering of the Finland national football team
Finland national football team
The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland....
in May 2011. He made his senior national team debut on 7 June 2011 in 5−0 defeat against Sweden
Sweden national football team
The Swedish national football team represents Sweden in association football and is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body for Football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Råsunda Stadium in Stockholms län and their head coach is Erik Hamrén. Sweden made their first...
. On 11 October 2011, Finnish star Roman Eremenko
Roman Eremenko
Roman Alekseevich Eremenko is a Russian-born Finnish footballer who currently plays for FC Rubin Kazan in the Russian Premier League. He is best known for his time in Dynamo Kyiv, with whom he became leader, winning the Ukrainian Premier League title in 2009, and playing in the Champions and...
described Ring as a soon-to-be key player in the Finland national football team
Finland national football team
The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland....
, saying: "I knew Alex when he came to the national team, but I hadn't seen any of his games before. When he came, it was immediately obvious that he is here to stay. He plays without fear."
Honours
HJK Helsinki- VeikkausliigaVeikkausliigaVeikkausliiga is the premier division of Finnish football, comprising the top 12 clubs of the country. Veikkausliiga is currently ranked as the 28th best league in Europe. Its main sponsor is the Finnish national betting agency Veikkaus, hence the league's name...
: 20112011 VeikkausliigaThe 2011 Veikkausliiga was the eighty-first season of top-tier football in Finland. It began on 2 May 2011 and ended on 29 October 2011. HJK Helsinki were the defending champions and successfully defended their title.... - Finnish CupFinnish CupThe Finnish Cup is Finland's main national cup competition in football.This yearly competition is open for member clubs of the FA of Finland. Finnish Cup has been played since 1955.Finnish Cup winner qualifies to UEFA Europa League...
: 20112011 Finnish CupThe 2011 Finnish Cup is the 57th season of the main annual football cup competition in Finland. It is organized as a single-elimination knock–out tournament. Participation in the competition is voluntary....