It has already been reported that the Scottish and Latvian clubs were negotiating the transfer of the coach from “Riga” to “St Johnstone”.
“We have agreed with “St Johnstone” on the transfer of the head coach, 51-year-old Finnish Valakari, to the Scottish Premier League club,” says “Riga”.
“The rest of the coaching staff will continue working in the team,” reports the club.
Valakari, who became the head coach of “Riga” before the 2024 season, helped the Riga team win 26 victories in 36 official matches, with the team drawing six times and losing five times.
Under the leadership of Valakari, “Riga” won the Latvian Super Cup.
“St. Johnstone” occupies the tenth place in the 12-team championship in the Scottish Premier League with four points in seven games.
Valakari, a Finnish specialist, has been working in Latvia since the 2023 season, when he took over the “Audas” team from Tomislav Stipic. Under the leadership of Valakari, “Auda” won the bronze medals of the Latvian championship last season.
Under the leadership of a Finnish specialist, “Auda” made its debut in the European Cups, entering the second round of UEFA Conference League qualification. “Riga” also made it to the second round of UEFA Conference League qualification this season.
Before joining “Auda”, Valakari worked in the Finnish club Kuopio “Palloseura” (“KuPS”), in whose ranks Jānis Ikaunieks played, winning the title of Finnish vice-champion, and also triumphed in the Finnish Cup.
During his coaching career, Valakari has also coached two other Finnish teams “Abo IFK” and “SJK Seinajoki”, as well as the Norwegian team “Tromso IL”, which at that time played in the Norwegian top league.
As a footballer, Valakari represented the Finnish clubs “Kontu”, “FinnPa”, “TPS”, the Scottish Premier League club “Motherwell”, the English Premier League team Dārbi “County” and the American club “Dallas” as a midfielder. Valakari played 32 games in the Finnish national team.
2024-10-02 14:53:22