Football Football player Joni Kauko wanted to think about his future, his girlfriend and his family – that’s why he left for India

Why miraculously represented Owls Joni Kauko, 31, moved from Denmark to India to play after last season?

The career of a footballer is short and uncertain, but even footballers look for the same things in the labor market for sport as possible for ordinary employees: security, a good salary, long holidays and interesting jobs.

A long season in Goa, India, undeniably sounds like an exotic experience, but on top of that, he got a lot more.

“I think I’ve been playing in Europe for the last ten years. Holidays have been quite rare. Usually I have had two weeks vacation in the summer and three in the winter. The season here is so much shorter that I get to be home too [Suomessa] more. It influenced my decision. ”

In India, the game season runs from November to late March.

“I wanted to think about my own future, my girlfriend and family,” Kauko says.

The other thing that influenced the decision was, of course, money.

Studies according to the world of football is increasingly reminiscent of the regular labor market. In football however, there are also features that are not find in the regular job market.

Professor of Sports Economics at the University of Paderborn Bernd Frickin according to the study, the salaries of athletes depend not only on age and experience, but also on things like the goals scored, the player’s place on the field and even the fame that manifests itself, for example, in Google searches.

According to the CIES research institute for European football, the recruitment policy of football clubs is increasingly influenced by short-term plans.

“In an ever more fragmented and speculative context, owners and managers tend to optimize financial returns in the player transfer market at the expense of sporting considerations,” CIES noted in its 2018 analysis of the football labor market.

This means, for example, that youth is a trump card in the European football labor market. The equation is not easiest for players over 30 years of age.

“How about that now. It should have happened quite a bit that I could have gotten such salaries in Europe, ”says Joni Kauko.

“ This seemed like a good option given my life situation. ”

“

“They have no point in leaving here.”

Indian Mohun Bagan, who plays in the Super League, wanted Kauko a couple of years ago, but at that time the Danish club Esbjerg was not ready to sell or borrow his well-done player.

When Kauko’s contract was coming to an end in Denmark, he was ready to sign a two-year deal with India. In Denmark, Kauko was kind of a line player, but in India he has the status of a star player.

According to Indian media, ATK Mohun Bagan’s best-paid players earn hundreds of thousands of US dollars a season, and Kauko is in that box.

Even the best Indian players get a good salary. Kauko thinks it is one of the reasons that Indian players are hardly seen in Europe.

“They have no point in leaving here.”

Indian In the Super League, each team may have four foreign players in the match line-up.

Other star players at ATK Mohun Bagan include the Frenchman Hugo Boumous, who came from the second league of France, the Spanish Tiri, who played in the third league of Spain before his transfer, and the Northern Irishman Carl McHugh, who moved out of the Scottish League. In Europe they were not stars, but in India it is different.

When the league was founded in 2014, the series saw former top players like Robert Pirès, David Trezeguet, David James and Fredrik Ljungberg.

According to Kauko, it is clear that foreign players make the biggest differences between teams. Local players do not have the same tactical training as Europeans.

“He sees great performances in the games, but overall it’s more of an end-to-end game.”

ATK Mohun Bagan started his season with two wins, and Kauko played in both matches. In the second match, Kauko was scored for the second goal when Mohun Bagan beat East Bengal 3-0. Both clubs are from Kolkata, East India, and so the match was a local fight now played on the other side of the country.

“

“I’m studying Hindi, a common language that everyone speaks.”

In the distance was the idea to get to know India and local life during his two seasons of washing. However, due to the corona situation, all eleven teams live in their own bubble hotels and matches are played at a few stadiums on their beaches in the famous Goa area. There is no audience, as there was not last season.

The team is subjected to corona tests every day, and no the hotel is free to move away from rehearsals and matches.

“Yes, this is going well. There has been no hotel death yet. In a way, he is used to the Korona era. There is a kind of bubble on our profession all the time. We’ve tried to come up with all sorts of things to do. We play cards and spend time together. ”

Kauko says he took a local teacher from whom he gets Hindi language instruction.

“She has taught the language and shared tips on food and culture. Thus, I have also gained an idea of ​​the whole country. I study Hindi, a common language that everyone speaks. ”

Kauko says the language is difficult but he has learned a bit of the basics.

“I try to listen to what my teammates are talking about. In dining out, it can be hard to catch the speech of some if they speak the language of their own area. By the way, everyone speaks English.”

The locals the kindness of the players has impressed Kauko.

“Respect for others is important, I’ve noticed that. I haven’t had any problems adjusting to the team. It could have been imagined that it would have been more difficult. ”

Kauko says he understands that many of the team’s players have grown up in pretty bad conditions.

“While some players don’t have the same skill level as foreign ones, they still give their all. They realize that they are in a good position when they get into such a situation in their lives. They also know how to appreciate it. ”

“

“I think I can still play for 6-7 years in my profession.”

Remote says he wants to make the most of his Indian time.

“My plan is to return to Finland at some point. If Inter Turku cares about me then, I would end my career in the team where it all started. It feels like a pretty good plan. ”

Kauko says he is in no hurry to stop playing. He hopes to see more of India next season and also Mohun Bagan’s own stadium in Kolkata.

“I think I can still play for 6-7 years in my profession. If all goes well here and you feel good, why not stay longer. ”

It can be very difficult to get back to the national football team from Kauko’s current league. He himself says he has not closed doors behind him.

“Then it’s a different matter whether the doors are closed to me. I talked to Rive about this [Huuhkajien päävalmentaja Markku Kanerva] with much before the transfer. I said I was always available when I needed it. ”