Teemu Pukki: His Rise to the Top
The English Premier League has seen many world-renowned strikers grace its football grounds across the years. Enthusiastic youngsters all over the globe dream of one day moving to the Premier League where they can battle it out with the best for a spot in the first eleven. Few manage to make that jump, and even fewer have the skill to impose themselves in an astounding way on the league's scoreboards. Finnish striker Teemu Pukki managed just that. The road to becoming one of the Premier League's most successful strikers was not an easy one but nevertheless, at the age of 31, he is now considered a top striker able to instill fear in any team's defense.
Brøndby IF: A Steppingstone Towards the Premier League
After somewhat negative spells at Schalke and Celtic where his talent was not particularly put to good use, Pukki joined the Danish team Brøndby IF. For some, this could have been considered a downgrade. The Finnish striker took this steppingstone wonderfully well though and, under the guide of the coach Alexander Zorniger, he improved both his defensive and offensive play.
At this club, he showed his abilities in a consistent manner and was quick to get the attention of clubs in major European leagues. After an impressive 2017/2018 season where he scored 19 goals and assisted his teammates 11 times from 44 appearances with Brøndby IF, he decided to make a move towards English football. Having been in the spotlight of many huge clubs, one may have expected Pukki to join a top Premier League side. Much to the surprise of betting enthusiasts and Finnish football betting sites who had offered massive odds for such a move, Pukki joined the English Championship team, Norwich City.
Norwich City: Promotion to the Premier League
Starting from the English second division proved to be another good decision in terms of Pukki's growth. Arguably one of the decisions that had initially hindered his rise to the top was his early move to the Bundesliga where appearances with Schalke on the field were scarce due to monstrous teammates such as Spanish legend Raul and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar.
Keeping his feet on the ground, Pukki joined Norwich and worked hard to increase his ability whilst helping his new teammates fight their way to the top. He went on to completely dominate the 2018/2019 Championship with 29 goals and 10 assists in 43 appearances. Impressive stats that led Norwich City straight up to the Premier League.
First Premier League Experience
Reaching such a big stage can be overwhelming for anyone. Pukki however seemed quite unfazed. This could be seen in the way he handled his first Premier League game against none other than the European Champions, Liverpool. Despite a 4-1 loss, Pukki managed to net in his side's goal against a formidable Liverpool defence. Whilst Norwich kept struggling in the Premier League, Pukki continued to display his tremendous ability in front of goal.
He scored and got an assist during a memorable 3-2 win against Manchester City. He added more goals to his tally against the likes of Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea, showing no fear in facing the best teams in the Premier League. Despite Norwich City being relegated to the Championship, Pukki's first Premier League experience was a positive one with 11 goals and 3 assists to his name.
The Return to the Championship
Having ended up back in the English second division, Norwich City immediately set their gaze on getting back to the top flight. It comes as no surprise that Pukki was as motivated as ever in helping his team reach its goals. His contribution was immediately noticed once again with 7 goals in the first 13 matches of the season.
Norwich continued to fight their way to the top thanks to Pukki's contribution in front of goal and won their promotion to the Premier League quite easily. It was yet another impressive year for the Finnish player with 26 goals and 4 assists in 41 appearances.
Second Experience in the Premier League
Needless to say, Pukki will want to prove himself once again in the Premier League. Following Euro 2020, where Finland made its European debut thanks to the goals Pukki scored in the qualifiers, Pukki will want to help his club stay in the topflight of English football through his goals and assists.
Whilst playing for a team that may be considered the underdog for many premier league clubs, Pukki will most likely still be the prolific scorer we know and love. He will continue to fight in his quest to help his club achieve its goals through his own personal goals. In this way, he will truly become the best Finnish striker to grace the football grounds of the English Premier League.
