Miko Virtanen hopes to prove his worth to Cove Rangers after signing a contract until the end of the season.
Virtanen joined Cove on a short-term deal this week, following a trial spell, and which sees him return to the north-east.
The Finnish midfielder spent time in the Aberdeen youth setup and had a loan spell at Arbroath, before he was released in 2021. He subsequently joined relegated Hamilton Accies but was released earlier this month after making 24 appearances for the club.
Virtanen comes from a full-time environment and is expected to provide competition in midfield, with Cove having lost Charlie Gilmour to injury and the end of his loan deal.
Now 23, Virtanen feels he needs to get games under his belt after a frustrating couple of seasons.
“I’ve been a little bit unfortunate with injuries the last two seasons, which has been unusual for me,” said Virtanen.
“It’s been a tough time but it’s all about getting myself going again and playing as much as possible between now and the end of the season.
“Cove have given me the opportunity to prove myself again after injury and hopefully it ends up being beyond the end of the season.
“After I negotiated my release from Hamilton, my agent was in contact with Paul (Hartley). He’d tried to sign me a couple of times before but for whatever reason, it didn’t work out.
“When I came into train, I was buzzing about it. The gaffer was happy with how I was doing and I was feeling good, so we managed to get something done until the end of the season.”
It also serves as a bit of a homecoming for Virtanen. He played at the Balmoral Stadium for Aberdeen’s reserves and his girlfriend is also from the north-east.
Away from football, he has commenced a business studies degree so moving into part-time football works out for him.
“It’s a new challenge but I’m going to make the most of it,” he said. “You can’t tell Cove are part-time, the way it’s run, and that’s testament to the players and staff with how well they do their jobs.
“It’s a little change for me but I’m starting business studies at university, so it gives me time to focus on that.
“Ultimately you need to prepare for life after football and the earlier you can do that, the better.
“It’s something I always wanted to do, to make sure I had got a good foundation in case something happens out of my control, like a career-ending injury. It’s important to prepare for the worst but hope it doesn’t happen.
Cove have struggled for results of late, heading into tonight’s game with Ayr, but Virtanen is used to dealing with such adversity, given Accies’ plight at the foot of the Championship.
He played in the meeting between the two sides at New Douglas Park earlier in the season, in which the hosts came from 4-1 down to snatch an unlikely draw against Cove.
“It was a crazy game,” said Virtanen. “Out of nowhere we were losing 4-1 and then grabbed an equaliser in the last-minute. It didn’t seem real.
“The first time I went to Arbroath we’d just got promoted and I don’t think anyone expected us to finish fifth. It’s nothing unusual for me to fight for every point and I enjoy that pressure.
“It makes every point you pick up that bit sweeter.”
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