Rasmus Karjalainen (born 4 April 1996) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a winger or forward for and captains Veikkausliiga club AC Oulu. He began his senior career in 2014, at age 18, with OLS.
Karjalainen made his international debut for Finland in June 2018, and has since appeared in 2018–19 UEFA Nations League and in Finland's UEFA Euro 2020 campaign, in which Finland national team secured its first ever place in European Football Championship tournament's group stage.
Club career OLS Karjalainen made his debut on senior level on 3 May 2014 in the ranks of OLS in a Kakkonen match against PS Kemi.
SJK Akatemia For the next season he transferred to SJK's reserve team SJK Akatemia. During the season he gained 27 caps and 15 goals and was the second best goal scorer of the division.
Oulu He spent season 2016 in his home town Oulu playing for AC Oulu.
PS Kemi Karjalainen made his debut on the highest level of Finnish football, Veikkausliiga on season 2017 when he transferred to PS Kemi. He made his debut on 8 April, playing the first 70 minutes of a 0–0 draw against HIFK.
KuPS For season 2018 he signed for KuPS.
Fortuna Sittard In June 2019 he made a deal with Eredivisie side Fortuna Sittard, for an undisclosed fee.
In August 2020 he was loaned for a year to Allsvenskan side Örebro. In March 2021, Karjalainen suffered almost a career ending severe head injury in training with Örebro, and was forced to be ruled out for several months.Huuhkajapelaaja järkyttyi – pieni kolhu harjoituksissa johti lähes hengenvaaralliseen vammaan: ”Luojan kiitos se löydettiin”, Iltalehti, 25 March 2021
Helsingborg On 17 July 2021, Karjalainen joined Superettan club Helsingborgs IF, signing a two-year deal.
Return to Oulu On 23 June 2022, Karjalainen returned to AC Oulu for an undisclosed fee.
After the 2023 Veikkausliiga season, it was announced that Karjalainen will leave AC Oulu.Analyysi: AC Oulun avauksesta menee puolet uusiksi – Muutamat pelaajat ilmoittivat jo jatkavansa muualla, Kaleva (newspaper), Kai Nevala, 30 October 2023
SJK On 16 November 2023, it was confirmed by SJK that they had signed with Karjalainen on a two-year deal, starting in 2024.Rasmus Karjalainen tekee paluun Kerhoon, sjk.fi, 16 November 2023 He played for the club's reserve team Kerho-07, currently SJK Akatemia, in 2015.
International career Karjalainen made his debut for the Finland national team on 5 June 2018 in a friendly match in Ilie Oană Stadium, Ploiești against Romania when he replaced Berat Sadik as a substitute on 63rd minute.
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsOLS2014Kakkonen19100——191SJK Akatemia2015Kakkonen271500——2715AC Oulu2013Ykkönen0010––102014Ykkönen0010––102016Ykkönen22300——223Total223200000243PS Kemi2017Veikkausliiga32851——379KuPS2018Veikkausliiga311762—2139202019Veikkausliiga12351—00174Total432011300215624Fortuna Sittard2019–20Eredivisie15121——172Örebro (loan)2020Allsvenskan13421——155Helsingborg2021Superettan19411——2052022Allsvenskan7000——70Total264110000275AC Oulu2022Veikkausliiga1470000—1472023Veikkausliiga2785110—339Total41155110004716SJK2024Veikkausliiga2874230 —3592025Veikkausliiga289204020369Total56166270207118AC Oulu2026Veikkausliiga650075–1310Career total3009232815541351108
International
.
National teamYearCompetitiveFriendlyTotalAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsFinland201820204020193021512020202040Total7061131
International goals
Scores and results list Finland's goal tally first.
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 11 January 2019 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar 1–2 1–2 Friendly
Honours KuPS Veikkausliiga: 2019
AC Oulu Finnish League Cup runner-up: 2023, 2026
Individual Veikkausliiga Team of the Year: 2017 Veikkausliiga Player of the Month: May 2018,Rasmus Karjalainen Veikkausliigan kuukauden pelaaja, JPY, 31 May 2018 April 2026AC Oulun Rasmus Karjalainen valittiin liigan kuukauden pelaajaksi, Kaleva, 6 May 2026
References
External links
Fortuna Sittard official profile Rasmus Karjalainen – SPL competition record