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Finland accidentally call up 51-year-old retired player for Serbia match

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Finland accidentally call up 51-year-old retired player for Serbia match
Photo: Instagram/nanneruuskanen
The Finland women's national football team has been left red-faced after mistakenly calling up a 51-year-old retired player for their recent UEFA Nations League clash against Serbia.

The surprising blunder occurred when coach Outi Saarinen inadvertently submitted the name of former international Stina Ruuskanen instead of 23-year-old Nanne Ruuskanen, a rising star at Swedish club Djurgården.

Line-up Error Goes Unnoticed Until Deadline

The error, which officials only realised after the submission deadline had passed, meant Nanne Ruuskanen was ineligible to play in the 1-1 draw in Helsinki on Tuesday.

The two players are not related, but share a surname and similar playing positions, which may have contributed to the confusion.

Saarinen later issued a public apology in a statement from the Finnish Football Association.
Nanne was, of course, disappointed but took the news very well considering the circumstances. I am very sorry for the mistake.

Stina Ruuskanen Takes it in Good Humour

Stina Ruuskanen, who last played for Finland nearly three decades ago, laughed off the administrative mix-up when speaking to Finnish outlet Ilta-Sanomat.
I'm definitely ready if the call comes! Just yesterday I was playing in a hobby league match... so my game feel is good.

The 51-year-old won two senior caps for Finland in the 1990s, but hasn't played competitive football in years - making the error all the more surprising.

Despite the confusion, Finland managed to secure a hard-fought draw against Serbia, but the incident has prompted calls for more thorough review procedures ahead of future international fixtures.

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