Janne Lindberg (born 24 May 1966) is a Finnish former professional footballer who works as a coaching coordinator for MP. Before that he worked as a sporting director of Veikkausliiga club VPS, but was fired at the end of 2023 for harassing scandal.
Playing career
Lindberg joined his local club Kumu as a six-year-old boy where he stayed for 18 years. In 1990, at the age of 24, he moved onto Haka and after two years at Haka he transferred to MyPa.
At MyPa Lindberg established himself as a Finnish International, gaining the first of his 34 caps in 1992. He also experienced European football in the UEFA Cup.
In 1994, ex-Morton player Jimmy Pearson recommended Lindberg to then Greenock Morton manager Allan McGraw. As a result, Morton signed Lindberg at a cost of £250,000; a deal that included Lindberg's MyPa teammate and compatriot Marko Rajamäki.
Lindberg (and Rajamäki) made their débuts on 22 October 1994 against Berwick Rangers, a match Morton lost 2–1. However, both players went on to have impressive careers at Morton. Lindberg made approximately 88 appearances, scoring five goals.
In 1997 Lindberg's contract at Morton was not renewed and he signed for German side 1. FC Saarbrücken. His family did not settle in Germany, consequently he returned to former club MyPa in 1998 where he played until 2005.[1]
Coaching career
After a lengthy spell coaching at MyPa, he became coach at VPS.
In 2002 Lindberg was instrumental in the transfer of former Finnish Under 21 internationalist Jani Uotinen from MyPa to former club Morton.
In September 2008 Lindberg was appointed as the new head coach of MyPa care-taking the rest of the season after the manager Janne Hyppönen was sacked. Previously Lindberg had worked as an assistant of Hyppönen. He left this post in 2010[2] and joined another Kouvola-based club Sudet, which he coached until 2017.
During 2014–2017, Lindberg was an assistant coach of the Finland under-21 national team.
During 2021–2023, Lindberg worked as a sporting director of Veikkausliiga club Vaasan Palloseura (VPS). He was fired after the 2023 season,[3] after it went public that he had sent several sexually harassing messages to female colleagues.[4]
On 26 September 2024, Lindberg started as a coaching coordinator for the youth sector of Ykkösliiga club Mikkelin Palloilijat (MP).[5][6]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | Division | League | Europe | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Kuusankosken Kumu | 1984 | Kakkonen | – | |||||
| Sudet | 1985 | Kakkonen | – | |||||
| Kuusankosken Kumu | 1986 | Kakkonen | – | |||||
| 1987 | Kakkonen | – | ||||||
| 1988 | Kakkonen | – | ||||||
| 1989 | Ykkönen | 21 | 5 | – | 21 | 5 | ||
| 1990 | Veikkausliiga | 17 | 2 | – | 17 | 2 | ||
| Total | 104 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 104 | 36 | ||
| Haka | 1991 | Veikkausliiga | 21 | 4 | – | 21 | 4 | |
| MYPA | 1992 | Veikkausliiga | 32 | 1 | – | 32 | 1 | |
| 1993 | Veikkausliiga | 27 | 3 | 2[a] | 0 | 29 | 3 | |
| 1994 | Veikkausliiga | 24 | 3 | 4[b] | 0 | 28 | 3 | |
| Total | 83 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 89 | 7 | ||
| Greenock Morton | 1994–95 | Scottish Second Division | 25 | 1 | – | 25 | 1 | |
| 1995–96 | Scottish First Division | 26 | 2 | – | 26 | 2 | ||
| 1996–97 | Scottish First Division | 24 | 2 | – | 24 | 2 | ||
| Total | 75 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 75 | 5 | ||
| 1. FC Saarbrücken | 1997–98 | Regionalliga West/Südwest | 24 | 1 | – | 24 | 1 | |
| MYPA | 1998 | Veikkausliiga | 15 | 0 | – | 15 | 0 | |
| 1999 | Veikkausliiga | 26 | 2 | – | 26 | 2 | ||
| 2000 | Veikkausliiga | 24 | 4 | 2[c] | 2 | 26 | 6 | |
| 2001 | Veikkausliiga | 26 | 1 | 2[b] | 1 | 28 | 2 | |
| 2002 | Veikkausliiga | 17 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 19 | 0 | |
| 2003 | Veikkausliiga | 20 | 1 | 4[b] | 0 | 24 | 1 | |
| Total | 128 | 8 | 10 | 3 | 138 | 11 | ||
| Career total | 435 | 61 | 16 | 3 | 451 | 63 | ||
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
- ^ a b c d Appearances in UEFA Cup
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Intertoto Cup
International
- As of 6 October 1996
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finland | 1993 | 10 | 0 |
| 1994 | 12 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 9 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 34 | 1 | |
- Scores and results list Finland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lindberg goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 26 April 1995 | Svangaskarð, Toftir, Faroe Islands |  Faroe Islands |
3–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying |
Honours
MYPA
- Veikkausliiga runner-up: 1993, 1994, 2002
Greenock Morton
1. FC Saarbrücken
- Saarland Cup: 1997–98
Individual
References
- ^ "Janne Lindberg". National-Football-Teams.com. Retrieved 10 May 2010.
- ^ Mitchell, Jonathan (12 December 2013). "Three former Finnish favourites apply for Morton manager's job". Greenock Telegraph. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
- ^ Häiritseviä viestejä naisille lähettänyt Janne Lindberg sai potkut, mtvuutiset.fi, MTV Oy, 10 November 2023
- ^ Janne Lindberg lähetti seksuaalisävytteisiä viestejä – Selvisi varoituksella, Iltalehti, 7 November 2023
- ^ JUNIORIT: Janne Lindberg valmennuksen kehittäjäksi Mikkelin Palloilijoihin, mikkelinpalloilijat.fi, 26 September 2024
- ^ Janne Lindberg aloittaa Mikkelin Palloilijoiden valmennuksen kehittäjänä, Länsi-Savo, 26 September 2024
- ^ Captain's Ball, palloliitto.fi
External links
- Janne Lindberg – FIFA competition record (archived)
- Janne Lindberg at National-Football-Teams.com
- Janne Lindberg at Soccerbase
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