Past and present Premier League football stars Jussi Jääskeläinen and Sami Hyypiä have given their backing to Rally Finland and have likened the passionate support rallying receives in their native Finland to the level football receives in England. Jääskeläinen, who plays for Bolton Wanderers, and Hyypiä, who played at Liverpool for ten years before his recent move to Bayer Leverkusen in Germany, have both experienced the support of football fans in England, as well as the way rallying is regarded in Finland. “Many of my friends at home go to Rally Finland regularly and always say the experience is really good,†said Hyypiä. “I went to local rallies when I was younger, and had to ski across fields to get there, and the experience has stayed with me." “Rally is such a popular sport in Finland because it is steeped in tradition," added Jääskeläinen. "We have a great history of producing a number of worthy champions over the years and there are many promising young drivers who look set to continue Finland’s great achievements in rally driving.†Championship leader (and fanatical Liverpool supporter) Mikko Hirvonen will be pleased to hear that one of his team's most prominent players of recent years will be backing him next week. Asked who he will be supporting, Hyppia said: "Well, [Sebastien] Loeb is a fantastic driver and so great to watch, but I suppose I had better say I will be supporting all the Finnish drivers out there! Mikko is doing well currently which is superb and I hope that Finland continues to produce great drivers in the future!†Liverpool supporter Hirvonen has the backing of one of his team's former stars, Sami Hyypiä WRC
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