Seth Saarinen

Seth Saarinen
Personal information
Date of birth (2001-05-05) 5 May 2001 (age 23)
Place of birth Helsinki, Finland
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Defender
Team information
Current team
 De Graafschap
Youth career
–2017 HJK
2017 Zürich
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2019 Klubi 04 22 (1)
2020–2022 Haka 59 (3)
2023–2024 KuPS 43 (4)
2025– De Graafschap 0 (0)
International career‡
2016–2017 Finland U16 5 (0)
2019 Finland U18 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22 October 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 12:34, 22 July 2020 (UTC)

Seth Saarinen (born 5 May 2001) is a Finnish footballer who plays as a right-back for Dutch Eerste Divisie club De Graafschap.

Club career

Saarinen spent his youth years in HJK youth sector, before he transferred to FC Zürich in 2017, for a €100,000 transfer fee.[1]

Saarinen signed with Veikkausliiga club Haka on 11 December 2019 on a one-year deal.[2] His contract with Haka was extended for two more years on 6 September 2020.[3]

Ahead of the 2023 Veikkausliiga season, Saarinen signed with KuPS on a two-year deal.[4]

On 7 September 2024, it was announced that Saarinen would join Dutch club De Graafschap in January 2025. He had signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with an option for one more.[5]

Personal life

Saarinen was born in Finland to a Swiss mother and a Finnish father, and he holds dual citizenship of Finland and Switzerland.[6] He fulfilled the mandatory Finnish military service in Santahamina, Helsinki, between Autumn 2023 and Spring 2024.

Career statistics

As of 22 October 2024.[7]
Club Season League Cup[a] Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Klubi 04 2018 Ykkönen 2 0 0 0 – 0 0 2 0
2019 Kakkonen 20 1 0 0 – 2[b] 0 22 1
Total 22 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 24 1
Haka 2020 Veikkausliiga 12 0 6 1 – – 18 1
2021 Veikkausliiga 19 2 2 0 – – 21 2
2022 Veikkausliiga 28 1 4 0 – 5[c] 0 37 1
Total 59 3 12 1 0 0 0 0 76 4
KuPS 2023 Veikkausliiga 24 3 3 0 2[d] 0 6[c] 0 35 3
2024 Veikkausliiga 19 1 5 0 1[d] 0 7[c] 0 32 1
Total 43 4 8 0 3 0 13 0 66 4
KuPS Akatemia 2024 Ykkönen 1 1 – – – 1 1
De Graafschap 2024–25 Eerste Divisie 0 0 0 0 – – 0 0
Career total 125 9 20 1 3 0 20 0 168 10
Notes
  1. ^ Includes Suomen Cup
  2. ^ Appearances in the Kakkonen Cup
  3. ^ a b c Appearances in the Finnish League Cup
  4. ^ a b Appearances in the UEFA Europa Conference League

Honours

KuPS

References

  1. ^ 16-vuotias suomalaislupaus siirtyy HJK:sta Sveitsiin - maajoukkuevalinta vielä auki, Iltalehti, 12 June 2017
  2. ^ Haka teki uusia sopimuksia: Joonas Immonen jatkaa maalilla, nuoresta Seth Saarisesta ensimmäinen uusi kiinnitys, Aamulehti, 11 December 2019
  3. ^ Purme ja Saarinen jatkosopimuksiin Hakan kanssa, Veikkausliiga, 6 September 2020
  4. ^ KuPSissa jo kolme päävalmentajaa kokenut Saarinen lähti ulkomaan kentille heti yläkoulun jälkeen, mutta Sveitsin visiitti jäi lyhyeksi, Savon Sanomat, Outi Poikonen, 3 June 2023
  5. ^ De Graafschap versterkt zich in de winter met Seth Saarinen, degraafschap.nl, 7 September 2024
  6. ^ Rönkä, Otto (12 June 2017). "16-vuotiaasta Seth Saarisesta tuorein ulkomaille lähtevä suomalaislupaus – "FC Zürichiltä iso panostus"" (in Finnish). Yle. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  7. ^ Seth Saarinen at Soccerway. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  8. ^ Kuopio villiintyi KuPSin mestaruudesta – Eini ilmestyi juhlahumuun, Yle, 19 October 2024
  9. ^ KuPS nousi takaa ohi Suomen Cupin voittoon – Petteri Pennanen ratkaisi pelin upealla laukauksella, Yle, 21 September 2024