In a mid week match in week 18, on Mon Aug 8th, Lahti plays host to HIFK in a Veikkausliiga match. Weather on match day is looking like a cloudy and cool day, with daytime temperatures of only 19 degrees, which will be a great treat for players. In their last match, Lahti recorded a 1-1 draw against Ilves. Kai Meriluoto struck first for Ilves in the 11th minute on a feed from Petteri Pennanen, then Teemu Penninkangas tied it up for Lahti in the 79th minute earning Lahti at least a draw. They’re hoping to improve on their recent performance, having lost 7 of their last 10, while in their last match, 12th placed HIFK, recorded a 0-3 loss against Inter Turku. Juho Hyvärinen struck first for Inter Turku in the 28th minute on a feed from Petteri Forsell, then Aleksi Paananen added another in the 45th minute In the end, HIFK was frustrated by Inter Turku’s defence and couldn’t put any tallies on the board. Inter Turku ended the match with the shutout victory. HIFK looks to improve on their recent performance, having lost 7 of their last 10.
HIFK and Lahti last played eachother at the Bolt Arena on Mon Apr 18th. Lahti won by a score of 3 to 0. Geoffrey Chinedu Charles scored the first goal for Lahti in the 52nd minute, then Altin Zeqiri added another in the 80th minute In the end, HIFK couldn’t muster any offence and Lahti ran away with the shutout win.
HIFK hasn’t been successful in netting any goals lately. Their top scorers in the last 5 matches are Sergei Eremenko and Eero Markkanen, and they each have 1 goal. Macoumba Kandji and Kevin Kouassivi-Benissan are the top scorers for Lahti in the last five matches, but unfortunately they only have one goal. It’s hard to imagine having success with those stats.