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Antti Niemi
Personal information
Full name	Antti Mikko Niemi
Date of birth	31 May 1972 (1972-05-31) (age 37)
Place of birth	Oulu, Finland
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Club information
Current club	Portsmouth
Number	15
Senior career1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1991–1995 1995–1997 1997–1999 1999 1999–2002 2002–2006 2006–2008 2009–	HJK København Rangers → Charlton Athletic (loan) Heart of Midlothian Southampton Fulham Portsmouth	101 (0) 047 (0) 013 (0) 000 (0) 089 (0) 106 (0) 062 (0) 000 (0)
National team2
1992–2007	Finland	067 (0)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:01, 15 May 2008 (UTC). 2 National team caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2006. * Appearances (Goals) Location of Oulu in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Finland Province Oulu Province Region Northern Ostrobothnia Sub-region Oulu sub-region Charter 1605 Government  - City manager Matti Pennanen Area  - City 449. ... Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the south coast city of Portsmouth. ... Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi (or HJK), internationally known as HJK Helsinki, is a Finnish football club, based in the capital Helsinki. ... FC København is a Danish football team, playing in Copenhagen, and is now a part of Parken Sport & Entertainment. ... For other uses, see Rangers F.C. (disambiguation). ... Current season Charlton Athletic Football Club (also known as The Addicks) is a professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. ... Southampton Football Club is a professional English football team, nicknamed The Saints and based in the city of Southampton. ... Current season Fulham Football Club are an English football team based in Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. ... Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the south coast city of Portsmouth. ...

Antti Mikko Niemi (born 31 May 1972) is a Finnish football goalkeeper, who currently plays for English Premier League club Portsmouth. A player (wearing the red kit) has penetrated the defence (in the white kit) and is taking a shot at goal. ... For other sports leagues which may be referred to by this name, see list of professional sports leagues. ... Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the south coast city of Portsmouth. ...

Club career

Early career

Niemi was born in Oulu, Finland and began his career with HJK Helsinki, where he made over 100 appearances in four years, before transferring to F.C. Copenhagen in 1995. Impressive performances over the next two years saw a transfer to Great Britain with Glasgow club [[Rangers F.C.] Location of Oulu in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Finland Province Oulu Province Region Northern Ostrobothnia Sub-region Oulu sub-region Charter 1605 Government  - City manager Matti Pennanen Area  - City 449. ... F.C. Copenhagen (Danish: F.C. København, or FCK in short) is a Danish football team located in Copenhagen. ...

Hearts

Niemi moved to Edinburgh to join Heart Of Midlothian in the summer of 1999. He became a hero for Hearts fans in the three years he played at Tynecastle. He put in some fantastic performances which helped Hearts maintain their status as Scotland's best team outside the Old Firm. Niemi also became famous in Scotland for his fantastic ability to save penalties. Antti Niemi also played in European competition for Hearts against opponents such as Stuttgart, Antwerpen and Toulouse. For other uses, see Edinburgh (disambiguation). ...

Southampton

After three seasons in Edinburgh, Niemi moved to Southampton in 2002. He played for Southampton in the 2003 FA Cup final against Arsenal which was lost 1-0; Niemi was substituted during the game due to a calf injury by Paul Jones. In a game against Fulham in the 2002–03 season, he came up for a corner in injury time with Southampton trailing 2-1. The ball fell at his feet and he crashed a shot against the crossbar, and Michael Svensson was able to turn in the rebound, salvaging a draw.^[1] There was much speculation regarding Niemi's future at Southampton with a host of leading Premier League clubs rumoured to be interested in his services, such as Manchester United and Arsenal. After Southampton were relegated in 2005 and failed to be promoted the following season, Niemi decided to return to the Premiership with Fulham, for whom he signed in January 2006. Southampton Football Club is a professional English football team, nicknamed The Saints and based in the city of Southampton. ... The FA Cup Final 2003 was the final and deciding match of the FA Cup for the 2002-03 season. ... Arsenal Football Club (also known as Arsenal, The Arsenal or The Gunners) are an English professional football club based in Holloway, north London. ... Paul Jones (born Chirk April 18, 1967) started his career at Kidderminster Harriers in 1986 and then moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers for a fee of £60,000 in 1991. ... Michael Svensson (born 25 November 1975) is a Swedish professional football player who currently plays as a central defender for Southampton. ...

Fulham

Niemi was badly hurt in a freak accident during a match against Watford on 1 January 2007 when rushing out to head the ball; he toppled over his own defender, Carlos Bocanegra, and landed on his head. He was taken from the field of play on a stretcher after ten minutes of treatment, but was later cleared of any spinal injury. He was released from hospital later that night with only ligament and muscle damage to the neck.^[2] It has been suggested that Harry the Hornet be merged into this article or section. ... Carlos Bocanegra (born May 25, 1979) is a Mexican-American soccer player who currently plays for Fulham of the English Premiership. ...

He remained Fulham's first choice keeper until 1 March 2008, when, following injury, he was replaced by Kasey Keller. On 3 September 2008 it was announced at that he had retired from professional football due to a wrist injury.^[3] Kasey C Keller, (born November 29, 1969 in Lacey, Washington, United States) is a football goalkeeper, who plays for Fulham of the English Premier League. ...

Portsmouth

Despite announcing his retirement from the game the previous year it was confirmed on 28 July 2009 that Antti Niemi was in talks with Portsmouth F.C.^[4]. On 7 August, Niemi confirmed he had signed for Portsmouth on a one year deal as backup to David James and to work with the goalkeeping coaches.^[5] Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the south coast city of Portsmouth. ...

International career

Niemi was first choice for the Finnish national team for almost a decade, before announcing his decision to retire from international football in 2005, but returned to the roster in 2007 playing a friendly game against Spain (0-0). He was capped 66 times by his country before this. First international Finland 2 - 5 Sweden (Helsinki, Finland; October 22, 1911) Biggest win Finland 10 - 2 Estonia (Helsinki, Finland; August 11, 1922) Biggest defeat Germany 13 - 0 Finland (Leipzig, Germany; September 1, 1940) The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football...

References

• Jeremy Wilson (2006). Southampton’s Cult Heroes. Know The Score Books. ISBN 1-905449-01-1. 

External links

• Antti Niemi career stats at Soccerbase
• Profile at www.fulhamfc.com
• Profile at ESPNsoccernet.com
• FootballDatabase provides Antti Niemi's profile and stats
• Antti Niemi Official Website at icons.com
• Profile at londonhearts.com

Awards
Preceded by Christian Lønstrup	F.C. Copenhagen Player of the Year 1997	Succeeded by Bjarne Goldbæk
Preceded by James Beattie	Southampton F.C. Player of the Season 2003 – 2004	Succeeded by Peter Crouch