Joel Pohjanpalo

Joel Julius Ilmari Pohjanpalo (born 13 September 1994) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Turkish Super Lig club Caykur Rizespor on loan from Bayer Leverkusen and the Finland national football team. Pohjanpalo was born in Helsinki, Finland where he began his career with HJK. He made his Veikkausliiga debut on 26 October 2011 at the age of 17 and moved out to Germany at age 19 in 2013.

Pohjanpalo made his international debut for Finland in November 2012, at the age of eighteen and has since made over thirty appearances, including playing in matches for 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.

Club Career

HJK

A product of his hometown club HJK, Pohjanpalo emerged through the youth ranks, first appearing with the reserve team (Klubi-04) in 2011 at the age of 16. He made his Veikkausliiga debut on 26 October 2011, starting against RoPS. During his first season in the Finnish 2nd division with Klubi-04, he made 21 appearances, scored a record-breaking 33 league goals and was awarded as the series player of the season. Following his excellent performances with the reserves, Pohjanpalo signed a new contract with HJK on 7 December 2011, keeping him in the Finnish capital until 2015.

Pohjanpalo started HJK's first league match of the 2012 Veikkausliiga season on 15 April 2012, scoring a hat-trick within the space of three minutes (162 seconds) against IFK Mariehamn. After a three-day trial with Liverpool in August 2012, Pohjanpalo was offered a three-year contract but rejected the deal due to a lack of guaranteed playing time for Liverpool F.C. Reserves. He finished the 2012 season at HJK with 19 goals in 42 games in all competitions. He was awarded as the Veikkausliiga rookie of the season.

Bayer Leverkusen and loans

On 1 September 2013, Pohjanpalo was loaned to German Bundesliga team Bayer Leverkusen, who then loaned him to 2. Bundesliga team VfR Aalen. At Aalen, Pohjanpalo started thirteen matches and appe

This page also has a version in other languages :  Йоэль Похьянпало (russian)