St Johnstone Appoints Paavo Valakari as Performance Manager

St Johnstone has brought Paavo Valakari, son of head coach Simo, into the club’s coaching staff to serve as performance manager. The 26-year-old will be integrated into the first-team coaching staff and will also conduct training sessions for players ranging from the academy to development levels. St Johnstone states that his responsibilities will include “analysing game model and performance, while determining how future improvements can be made”. The 26-year-old Finn has previous coaching experience in his home country with SJK Seinajoki and KaPa, where his roles included head coach of the women’s team and the men’s reserve team. He commented: “This brings huge excitement and it is also a huge honour for me. It is a great feeling to get started.”