Teemu Pukki, born in Kotka on 29 March 1990 (age 36), is a Finnish striker now with HJK, where he wears number 20. His early rise included a neat enough marker: during an early spell away from his parent club, he scored on debut.
Celtic signed him from Schalke 04 in August 2013 for around £3m. It was a move with logic to it, but not much comfort in the end. Pukki never quite became the reliable centre-forward Celtic needed, and in July 2015 he left for Brondby in a deal worth around £600,000.
Brondby gave him the platform Celtic had not. From there, and through later spells including Minnesota United, his career moved on from the slightly awkward promise of his Glasgow years. The more settled version of Pukki emerged at Norwich City, where his 2018-19 league season brought 29 goals in 43 appearances.
He is now back in Finland with HJK. In 2026 he has made 11 league appearances and scored three league goals, with 15 appearances and four goals in all competitions including Europa Conference League qualifying. He has also remained involved with Finland, making four appearances in European World Cup qualifying this season.
Pukki’s career has taken him from Kotka to Germany, Glasgow, Denmark, England, the United States and back to Finland. Celtic was an important stop, though not the spell that best explained him as a striker.
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