Vassiljev looks forward to final game for Estonian national team against Andorra
Ahead of Estonia's friendly against Andorra, Konstantin Vassiljev, who is making his final appearance for the national team, was modest about his playing form.
After recording a 0-5 defeat against Italy in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers on Friday, the Estonian national team can now focus on Tuesday's friendly against Andorra. Based on results from past meetings between the two sides, Estonia are expected to approach the game with a positive attitude. Estonia have recorded victory in all of their 12 previous matches against Andorra.
Tuesday's game is even more special as it will be the last time Konstantin Vassiljev and Taijo Teniste take the field for the national team. Teniste has kept in shape playing for Tartu JK Welco in the Estonian second division this season.
Meaanwhile Vassiljev, who has been FC Flora Tallinn head coach since the end of last year, remained modest when assessing his own playing form.
"Fortunately, the coaches are so smart that [Monday's] training was more like a walkabout," Vassiljev said at a pre-match press conference.
"Taijo still plays so much that he is always in good shape. I didn't have to do any extra training, I just had to do a little training. I've basically been out of this routine for eight months and just needed to move a little to be able to get on the field," added Vassiljev, who has earned a record 158 international caps, scoring 26 goals.
"After a serious knee injury, it was a motivator to some extent to get my knee back in shape and recover from a serious injury. But I didn't think about it myself for a while," added Teniste. "Every game in the national team is special, especially when you play in front of your home crowd, and it's definitely a day I'll remember for the rest of my life."
For head coach Jürgen Henn, who has been at the helm of the national team for just over a year, the match against Andorra will be his first friendly international.
"It's a completely different situation, where we have two totally different teams and perhaps haven't played with a team like this in a long time. The challenge is different, where we expect to have more of the ball and to attack," said Henn.
Nevertheless, Andorra may also fancy their chances of getting a result against Estonia. The minnows only lost 0-2 to England on Saturday and have proved difficult to break down.
The men's international friendly between Estonian and Andorra takes place on Tuesday, September 9 at the A. Le Coq Arena in Tallinn. Kick-off is at 7 p.m. Estonian time, with live coverage on ETV2 here from 6.45 p.m.
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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste, Michael Cole
