Ex-Sunderland midfielder Teemu Tainio explains why the club’s size and intensity only hit him after arriving
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Former Sunderland midfielder Teemu Tainio has reflected on his move to Wearside, his memories of playing for the Black Cats, and the path his career has taken since leaving the Stadium of Light.
Tainio joined Sunderland in 2008 for a reported €3million (£2.6million), becoming the club’s first summer signing and the first Finnish player to represent the Black Cats. His arrival came after a difficult decision to leave Tottenham Hotspur, where opportunities had become limited.
“It was a huge disappointment to leave the club I had dreamt about playing for. When Juande Ramos came in, I knew my game time would be limited. I could have stayed at Spurs longer, sat on the bench. But I’m not that kind of guy… I wanted to be playing,” Tainio said. “Sunderland came in for me, and I travelled there to speak to Roy Keane, who was the head coach at the time. He really wanted to sign me, and as someone who had such a great playing career playing in the same position as me, that meant a lot.”
Tainio spent two seasons on Wearside, featuring during a challenging period for the club, but he retains a strong affection for Sunderland and its supporters. “We had a difficult first season when I was at Sunderland, but we were able to stay in the Premier League,” he said.
“Going there, I saw how big a club Sunderland is. I think people only appreciate just how big they are when they go there. As someone who grew up supporting Spurs, I knew how massive the north London derby was. But my word, Sunderland-Newcastle… what a massive rivalry there is between those two and games between them are intense to say the least!”
After leaving Sunderland in August 2010 by mutual consent, Tainio went on to have spells with Birmingham City, Ajax and later Major League Soccer, before turning his attention to life beyond playing. “After I retired from playing, I actually did a year of scouting work for Spurs,” he explained. “I travelled for the club mainly across Scandinavia, but also in other parts of Europe.
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“Then I started to coach. I started with youth teams. I then went back to one of my former clubs, FC Haka. They were struggling a bit, and I wanted to get them back to the top division in Finland. I became manager, and we were able to get the club promoted back to the top flight with a record-breaking season. I stayed for five years, and then it was time to try something new.”
His coaching career has since taken him across Europe and onto the international stage. “My former colleague (Toni Koskela) became a manager in Cyprus (with AEL Limassol), and he asked me if I wanted to become his assistant, and I said, ‘Why not!’ We were only there for about four months, unfortunately, as there were a lot of problems,” Tainio said. “After that, I spent some time with the Finland national team as an assistant. I was in that role when we played against England at Wembley in September 2024, and Harry Kane got his 100th England cap.”
Most recently, Tainio has been working in Estonia, while considering his next move in the game. “My most recent coaching job was in Estonia (with Tallinna Kalev). There has been some interest in me since, but I have wanted to calm things down and take a bit of time before taking my next coaching role.”