Full name Kari Ukkonen 1979–1982 KuPS Position Defender, Midfielder Years Team Height 1.82 m | Playing position Role Football player Place of birth Kuopio, Finland Name Kari Ukkonen | |
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Date of birth (1961-02-19) 19 February 1961 (age 54) | ||
Kari Ukkonen (born 19 February 1961 in Kuopio) is a Finnish former football player and current football manager. As player, Ukkonen was fielded as defender as well as midfielder.
Ukkonen represented Finland at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. Three years later, he earned his first cap for Finland in a 1-1 draw against Poland. The same year, Ukkonen was voted Finnish Footballer of the Year by sports journalists and the Football Association of Finland.
In between, in 1982, Ukkonen had moved from Finland to Belgium, when he was bought by Cercle Brugge. Ukkonen made his Belgian début on 13 November, when Cercle defeated SV Waregem with 2-1. Ukkonen would go on to win the Belgian Cup with Cercle in 1985. Ukkonen would spend most of his career in Belgium, also playing for other First division teams as Lokeren, Anderlecht and Royal Antwerp. Ukkonen ended his playing career with French side LB Châteauroux. He stayed in football as manager. First he was coach of Finland's national youth team. He was head coach of Finland at the 2001 World Youth Championship in Argentina. His next job was manager of Turun Palloseura.