Toni Ståhl

Toni Ståhl (born 11 May 1985) is a Finnish footballer who last played for Carolina RailHawks in the North American Soccer League.

Toni Ståhl
Toni Ståhl (right) versus Fredy Montero
Personal information
Full name Toni Ståhl
Date of birth (1985-05-11) 11 May 1985
Place of birth Tuusula, Finland
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Position(s) Defender, defensive midfielder
Youth career
0000–2002 HJK Helsinki
2006–2009 Connecticut Huskies
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002 Atlantis A 4 (0)
2003–2006 FC Espoo 26 (6)
2010 Philadelphia Union 1 (0)
2010 → Harrisburg City Islanders (loan) 1 (0)
2011–2013 Fort Lauderdale Strikers 64 (0)
2014 Carolina RailHawks 6 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21 July 2014

Career

Early career in Finland

Ståhl attended high school at Pohjois-Haagan Yhteiskoulu,[1] and was part of the youth teams of the most successful Finnish club of all time, HJK Helsinki.[2] After his time at HJK, he had a short spell with the Second Division team Atlantis Akatemia in late 2002, before joining FC Espoo in 2003.[3][4][5]

American college career

Ståhl accepted an invitation from the University of Connecticut to play college soccer in the United States, and he joined the Connecticut Huskies for the 2006 season. He was chosen as the Big East Rookie of the Year after his first season with the Huskies,[6] after being the only freshman to start and play in all 19 games that season. In 2009, he was named Big East Midfielder of the Year as he concluded his career with the Huskies tallying two goals and nine assists. He was also a nominee in the semifinal stage for the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy.[7]

Professional

In December 2009, Ståhl signed a contract with Major League Soccer, even though clubs from Sweden, Denmark and English Premier League club Burnley showed interest in him.[8]

Ståhl was subsequently drafted in the second round (17th overall) of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft by Philadelphia Union.[9] He was sent off on his MLS debut on 25 March 2010, in a game against Seattle Sounders FC. In April 2010 he played on loan with the Union's USL-2 affiliate Harrisburg City Islanders.[10]

On 14 January 2011, the Union announced that they declined the option on Ståhl's contract and he subsequently became a free agent.[11]

Ståhl signed with Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the North American Soccer League on 1 April 2011.[12] Following an impressive debut season for the Strikers, Ståhl was named to the NASL 2011 Best XI Team as one of four defenders.[13]

Career statistics
As of 29 May 2013
Club Season League League Cup Playoffs Continental Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Philadelphia Union 2010 MLS 1000————10
Harrisburg City Islanders (loan) 2010 USL-2 1000————10
Fort Lauderdale Strikers 2011 NASL 220——50——270
2012 210101000230
2013 40——————40
Career total 490106000560

References
  1. "2019 Men's Soccer Roster".
  2. UConn bio
  3. Innanen, Timo. "Tonin tuhkimotarina". Urheilulehti.
  4. Atlantiksen historia Atlantis FC.
  5. "Uutiset 2003 FC Espoo". Archived from the original on 14 December 2003. Retrieved 5 July 2018.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. Profile Detail | MLSDraft.net
  7. "UConn's Stahl named semifinalist for MAC Hermann Trophy". TopDrawerSoccer.com. Storrs, Connecticut. 3 December 2009. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  8. "Suomalaisfutaajalle historiallinen sopimus USA:han". Urheilulehti (in Finnish). Helsinki, Finland. 8 December 2009. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
  9. 2010 MLS SuperDraft
  10. City Islanders Settle for Tie Archived 25 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  11. Union Decline Option on MF Stahl
  12. "Strikers Round out Backline". April 2011.
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