Teemu Tainio
Encyclopedia
Teemu Tainio (ˈteːmu ˈtɑinio, born 27 November 1979 in Tornio
) is a Finnish
footballer, who currently plays for New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer
.
He can play both as a defensive and attacking midfielder
and out wide. Tainio also played at right-back under Juande Ramos at Tottenham.
in Kakkonen
, Finland's third division, at the age of fourteen. He was signed by Veikkausliiga
club FC Haka
for the 1996 season. Following a trial at Manchester United
in March 1997, Tainio joined French
club AJ Auxerre
in 1997, and spent eight years at the club. He won the Coupe de France
with Auxerre
twice, and also gained UEFA Champions League
experience. While with Auxerre, Tainio appeared in 204 official matches and scored 19 goals.
on a seven-year deal in the summer of 2005. He became a regular for Spurs in his first season, playing in various midfield positions.
He scored his first goal for his new club in December 2005 against Newcastle United
during a Premiership match at White Hart Lane
. Tainio was one of ten Spurs squad members struck down by a virus on the evening of 6 May 2006 before their crucial final game of the season against West Ham
. He nevertheless played in the match, which Spurs lost, missing out on a place in the Champions League.
He scored his second Spurs goal on 9 December 2006, the third goal in the 5–1 home win against Charlton Athletic
. His third goal for the club was an equaliser against West Ham
to make the score 2–2 on 4 March 2007. Spurs went on to win the game 4–3.
Tainio won the 2008 Football League Cup
(also known as the Carling Cup) when Tottenham took a 2–1 extra-time win over Chelsea
at Wembley Stadium
in the final played on 24 February 2008. He came on as a substitute in the 75th minute when the score was 1–1.
on the 23 July 2008 for an undisclosed fee. He became their first summer signing and the first Finnish player ever for Sunderland.
He scored his first goal for Sunderland in a second round Carling Cup game at Norwich
on 24 August 2009.
He left Sunderland on 31st August 2010, when Sunderland A.F.C terminated his contract by mutual consent.
on 1 September 2009, on loan for the remainder of the 2009–10 season. Having recovered from a calf injury sustained on international duty, he made his debut for the club on 13 September in a 1–0 home defeat in the Birmingham derby
against Aston Villa
, in which he produced a good performance in a less-familiar role at right-back.
. He made his Ajax debut on 11th September 2010, playing the last five minutes as a substitute for Demy de Zeeuw
in a 2-0 victory over Willem II. He also made appearance in the 2010-11 Champions League, playing the last 21 minutes against Real Madrid
in the 2-0 away loss match in the group stage. After making only 5 official appearances while with Ajax, Tainio accepted an offer from Major League Soccer
side New York Red Bulls.
season. He became the first Finn to sign for the team formerly known as the New York/New Jersey Metrostars when the club officially signed him on 9 March 2011. He made his official debut for New York on 19 March 2011, in the Red Bulls' 2011 MLS season opener, a 1-0 victory over Seattle Sounders FC
, assisting on Juan Agudelo
's game winning goal. He has quickly become a fan favorite early in the season with multiple assists, good play to his name.
on 5 February 1998 against
Cyprus
, and has been a regular for the team through most of the 2000s. After signing with New York Red Bulls in 2011, Tainio announced that he might retire at the international level, citing the long distance flights and time difference between the States and Finland.
|1998||3||0
|-
|1999||1||0
|-
|2000||3||0
|-
|2001||4||1
|-
|2002||6||0
|-
|2003||6||3
|-
|2004||2||1
|-
|2005||8||0
|-
|2006||2||0
|-
|2007||6||1
|-
|2008||5||0
|-
|2009||4||0
|-
|2010||2||0
|-
!Total||52||6
|}
Auxerre
Tottenham Hotspur
Tornio
Tornio is a town and municipality in Lapland, Finland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. The population density is , with a total population of . It borders to the Swedish municipality of Haparanda...
) is a 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...
footballer, who currently plays for New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
.
He can play both as a defensive and attacking midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
and out wide. Tainio also played at right-back under Juande Ramos at Tottenham.
Early career
Tainio was promoted to the first team of his home-town club TP-47TP-47
Tornion Pallo -47 is a Finnish football club, based in the town of Tornio. It currently plays in the Finnish Second Division . It plays its home matches at Pohjan Stadion...
in Kakkonen
Kakkonen
Kakkonen is the third tier of the Finnish football league system.-League structure:Kakkonen is divided to three groups of 14 clubs. A club plays each of the others in the same group twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents. Clubs gain three points for a win, one for a...
, Finland's third division, at the age of fourteen. He was signed by 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 FC Haka
FC Haka
Haka is a Finnish football club, based in the industry town of Valkeakoski. It is one of the most successful clubs in Finland, with nine Finnish championships and 12 Finnish Cup wins.- History :...
for the 1996 season. Following a trial at Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
in March 1997, Tainio joined French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
club AJ Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
in 1997, and spent eight years at the club. He won the Coupe de France
Coupe de France
The Coupe Charles Simon, commonly known as the Coupe de France , is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation...
with Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
twice, and also gained UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
experience. While with Auxerre, Tainio appeared in 204 official matches and scored 19 goals.
Tottenham Hotspur
With Tainio's contract with Auxerre due to expire in 2005, he became available on a free transfer. In January 2005, it was announced that he would move to Tottenham HotspurTottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
on a seven-year deal in the summer of 2005. He became a regular for Spurs in his first season, playing in various midfield positions.
He scored his first goal for his new club in December 2005 against Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
during a Premiership match at White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane is an all-seater football stadium in Tottenham, London, England. Built in 1899, it is the home of Tottenham Hotspur and, after numerous renovations, the stadium has a capacity of 36,230....
. Tainio was one of ten Spurs squad members struck down by a virus on the evening of 6 May 2006 before their crucial final game of the season against West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
. He nevertheless played in the match, which Spurs lost, missing out on a place in the Champions League.
He scored his second Spurs goal on 9 December 2006, the third goal in the 5–1 home win against Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
. His third goal for the club was an equaliser against West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
to make the score 2–2 on 4 March 2007. Spurs went on to win the game 4–3.
Tainio won the 2008 Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
(also known as the Carling Cup) when Tottenham took a 2–1 extra-time win over Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
in the final played on 24 February 2008. He came on as a substitute in the 75th minute when the score was 1–1.
Sunderland
He joined SunderlandSunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
on the 23 July 2008 for an undisclosed fee. He became their first summer signing and the first Finnish player ever for Sunderland.
He scored his first goal for Sunderland in a second round Carling Cup game at Norwich
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
on 24 August 2009.
He left Sunderland on 31st August 2010, when Sunderland A.F.C terminated his contract by mutual consent.
Birmingham City (loan)
Tainio joined Birmingham CityBirmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
on 1 September 2009, on loan for the remainder of the 2009–10 season. Having recovered from a calf injury sustained on international duty, he made his debut for the club on 13 September in a 1–0 home defeat in the Birmingham derby
Birmingham derby
In English football, the Second City derby is the local derby between the two major clubs in the city of Birmingham, England – Aston Villa and Birmingham City....
against Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
, in which he produced a good performance in a less-familiar role at right-back.
Ajax
Tainio signed a one-year contract on the very same day after he was released by Sunderland. At Ajax, he rejoined his former Tottenham coach, Martin JolMartin Jol
Maarten Cornelis "Martin" Jol is a Dutch football manager and former midfielder who currently manages Fulham in the Premier League. Jol played over 400 games during his career which included spells in the Netherlands, Germany, and England, as well as earning three caps with the Dutch national team...
. He made his Ajax debut on 11th September 2010, playing the last five minutes as a substitute for Demy de Zeeuw
Demy de Zeeuw
Demy Patrick René de Zeeuw is a Dutch footballer who currently plays for Russian Premier League club Spartak Moscow and the Netherlands national football team. He is a defensive midfielder described as a good tackler and a gifted passer of the ball. He previously played for AGOVV, Go Ahead Eagles,...
in a 2-0 victory over Willem II. He also made appearance in the 2010-11 Champions League, playing the last 21 minutes against Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
in the 2-0 away loss match in the group stage. After making only 5 official appearances while with Ajax, Tainio accepted an offer from Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
side New York Red Bulls.
New York Red Bulls
Tainio joined New York Red Bulls during their pre-season training for the 2011 Major League SoccerMajor League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
season. He became the first Finn to sign for the team formerly known as the New York/New Jersey Metrostars when the club officially signed him on 9 March 2011. He made his official debut for New York on 19 March 2011, in the Red Bulls' 2011 MLS season opener, a 1-0 victory over Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional soccer club based in Seattle, Washington. The club competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Sounders FC was established in November 2007 as a MLS expansion team, making it the 15th team in...
, assisting on Juan Agudelo
Juan Agudelo
Juan Sebastián Agudelo is a Colombian-born American soccer player. He currently plays for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer....
's game winning goal. He has quickly become a fan favorite early in the season with multiple assists, good play to his name.
International career
Tainio made his debut for the Finnish national teamFinland national football team
The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland....
on 5 February 1998 against
Cyprus
Cyprus national football team
The Cyprus national football team represents Cyprus in association football and is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association, the governing body for football in Cyprus. Cyprus' home ground is the GSP Stadium in Nicosia and the current coach is Nikos Nioplias...
, and has been a regular for the team through most of the 2000s. After signing with New York Red Bulls in 2011, Tainio announced that he might retire at the international level, citing the long distance flights and time difference between the States and Finland.
International goals
Finland's score first.| # | Date | Location | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 1 September 2001 |  TiranaTirana Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over... |
2–0 | Win | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA) Listed below are the dates and results for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the European zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification.... |
|
| 2. | 6 September 2003 |  BakuBaku Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal... |
2-1 | Win | UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying | |
| 3. | 11 October 2003 |  TampereTampere Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in... |
3-2 | Win | Friendly | |
| 4. | 16 November 2003 |  Houston |
2-1 | Win | Friendly | |
| 5. | 13 October 2004 |  AmsterdamAmsterdam Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... |
1-3 | Lose | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA) Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup... |
|
| 6. | 22 August 2007 | Tampere |
2-1 | Win | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying | |
International
|-|1998||3||0
|-
|1999||1||0
|-
|2000||3||0
|-
|2001||4||1
|-
|2002||6||0
|-
|2003||6||3
|-
|2004||2||1
|-
|2005||8||0
|-
|2006||2||0
|-
|2007||6||1
|-
|2008||5||0
|-
|2009||4||0
|-
|2010||2||0
|-
!Total||52||6
|}
Club
FC Haka- 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...
: 1997
Auxerre
- Coupe de FranceCoupe de FranceThe Coupe Charles Simon, commonly known as the Coupe de France , is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation...
: 2003, 2004–05
Tottenham Hotspur
- League CupFootball League CupThe Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
: 2007–082008 Football League Cup FinalThe 2008 Carling Cup Final was a football match played on 24 February 2008. It was the first League Cup Final to be played at the new Wembley Stadium, and the first to be played in England since the old Wembley was demolished in 2000. The defending champions were Chelsea, who beat Arsenal in the...