Having seen their club fall just short in Tuesday's U.S. Open Cup final, Minnesota United midfield duo Robin Lod and Rasmus Schuller will join called into Finland's national team for a pair of upcoming 2020 European Championship qualifier matches.
The Montreal Impact are also sending two players into the squad, defender Jukka Raitala and midfielder Lassi Lappalainen, for the upcoming qualifier bouts in Tampere, Finland, starting with a matchup against Greece on Sept. 5 before a clash with Italy on Sept. 8.
Lod is one of Minnesota's newest signings, joining the club in the MLS secondary transfer window earlier this month and scoring his first goal for the Loons in their 2-1 Open Cup final defeat to Atlanta United. He's made 33 full international appearances for Finland, including four so far in the the current European qualifying campaign.
Schuller is one of Minnesota's original MLSers, though injuries limited him to just four starts through their expansion campaign before half-season loan to Finish side HJK. He's appeared in 44 MLS matches, and also has 33 caps for his national team.
Raitala, 30, is a longtime contributor for his national team, with 45 senior caps to his name since his 2009 debut. He's been in MLS since 2017, spending that season with Columbus Crew SC before joining the Impact before the 2018 campaign after he was selected by LAFC in the 2017 MLS Expansion Draft and swiftly dealt to Montreal.
Lappalainen is a bit newer to the scene, but looks to be breaking into to Finland's regular rotation since making his senior team debut in a friendly against Sweden on Jan. 8, 2019.
The 21-year-old winger has tallied two assists in his five senior caps, three of which were Euro qualifiers earlier this year. He was a regular fixture on Finland's youth circuit, scoring five goals for the U19 side and three for the U21s. Currently on loan to Montreal from Serie A side Bologna, he's off to a strong start with the Impact, with four goals and one assist in just 342 MLS minutes this season.
