Bolton's Jussi Jääskeläinen joins elite Premiership club
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The Bolton Wanderers and Finland goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen had a red-letter day on Sunday, when he made his 400th appearance for the club in an English Premiership game against Manchester City.
Jääskeläinen joins a select coterie of players who have turned out four hundred times for the same club in league and cup matches.
The 33-year-old joined Bolton in 1997 when they were in the Championship, one division down from England's top league, and he has been with them ever since, although it briefly looked as if a move was on the cards when his contract ran out after the 2007/2008 season.
His role in the side over more than a decade was highlighted by the Bolton manager Gary Megson on the club's website last week.
Megson lauded Jääskeläinen as one of the three best keepers in the entire league, and said his purchase - for £100,000 - was one of the shrewdest moves by the manager at the time, Colin Todd.
Jääskeläinen was for many years in the shadow of Antti Niemi as Finland's first-choice goalkeeper, but since Niemi retired from the international game in 2005, he has been the regular man between the posts. He has 46 international caps, and was voted Footballer of the Year in Finland in 2007..
His 400th game also had a happy end. He marked up his third clean sheet of the season as Bolton - who were bottom of the table when the match kicked off - scored two late goals to defeat Manchester City 2-0.
The win, only their third in 11 games so far this season, propelled them up to 17th and out of the relegation zone.
Jääskeläinen's only Finnish rival in the Premiership in terms of longevity is Liverpool's central defender Sami Hyypiä.
Hyypiä has made just over 300 Premiership appearances for Liverpool, but his tally is swelled by nearly 100 matches played in European competitions. Hyypiä joined Liverpool in 1999.
Jääskeläinen joins a select coterie of players who have turned out four hundred times for the same club in league and cup matches.
The 33-year-old joined Bolton in 1997 when they were in the Championship, one division down from England's top league, and he has been with them ever since, although it briefly looked as if a move was on the cards when his contract ran out after the 2007/2008 season.
His role in the side over more than a decade was highlighted by the Bolton manager Gary Megson on the club's website last week.
Megson lauded Jääskeläinen as one of the three best keepers in the entire league, and said his purchase - for £100,000 - was one of the shrewdest moves by the manager at the time, Colin Todd.
Jääskeläinen was for many years in the shadow of Antti Niemi as Finland's first-choice goalkeeper, but since Niemi retired from the international game in 2005, he has been the regular man between the posts. He has 46 international caps, and was voted Footballer of the Year in Finland in 2007..
His 400th game also had a happy end. He marked up his third clean sheet of the season as Bolton - who were bottom of the table when the match kicked off - scored two late goals to defeat Manchester City 2-0.
The win, only their third in 11 games so far this season, propelled them up to 17th and out of the relegation zone.
Jääskeläinen's only Finnish rival in the Premiership in terms of longevity is Liverpool's central defender Sami Hyypiä.
Hyypiä has made just over 300 Premiership appearances for Liverpool, but his tally is swelled by nearly 100 matches played in European competitions. Hyypiä joined Liverpool in 1999.
Helsingin Sanomat