NOT all footballers take a conventional route into a new career when their playing days are over.
And that’s certainly the case for one former Rangers and Hearts ace.
Having been one of Scottish football’s top stars in the late 1990s and early 2000s, this former international star’s life is rather different these days.
Antti Niemi spent five years of his career in Scottish football.
Snapped up in 1997 by Walter Smith, Finland goalkeeper Niemi was brought in to compete with long time first choice Andy Goram and Theo Snelders for the No.1 shirt.
After Rangers failed in their quest for 10-in-a-row, there was huge upheaval in the summer of 1998 when Dick Advocaat arrived as boss.
Niemi and Lionel Charbonnier were the two goalkeepers competing to play, but that all changed when Champions League winner Stefan Klos arrived in December 1998.
The German would go on to be Rangers No.1 for much of the next decade.
That meant Niemi, who made just 13 league appearances for the Light Blues, moved on.
But he stayed in Scotland and was between the sticks for Hearts between 1999 and 2002, making over 100 appearances for the Jambos.
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One of the top keepers in the Scottish game, Niemi earned a switch to the English Premier League with Southampton, and would later move to Fulham and Portsmouth before retiring in 2010.
Capped 67 times by Finland, Niemi has stayed in the game with punditry work, covering the Premier League and international matches.
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But outside of football, he’s a man of many different talents!
Now aged 50, Niemi is a huge fan of fishing.
The former goalie regularly posts snaps to his Instagram showcasing his incredible catches.
The waters in and around of Helsinki are prime fishing hotspots and Niemi can be seen regularly fishing for huge pike in the lakes.
When he’s not on the water, you might find Niemi performing with a ROCK BAND.
A keen guitarist, Niemi has been seen playing with band Alkamaton.
Playing bass, synths and acoustic guitar, Niemi and his band have performed up and down Finland.
Before that, Niemi also formed a three-piece rock band with the Finland national team’s doctor and physio called ‘The Staff’.
They covered classic 70s and 80s rock tracks, with Niemi on guitar.
Speaking about his music career, Niemi said: “I had always said I wanted to surprise people, even if it was just once in my lifetime, by stepping on stage at a friend’s birthday or wedding to perform one rock song.
“It didn’t matter what it was, I just wanted to learn one song. One song became another and another and before I knew it, I had a band.”
You might thing punditry, fishing and being a musician would be enough to keep Niemi busy.
But – you’d be wrong!
That’s because he also ventured into selling BEETROOT juice.
First launching a few years ago, Niemi is still involved today, helping run Nitrate Beet.
Niemi was a founding partner of the business that produces beetroot based energy drinks.
Launching in 2020, the specially designed drinks for athletes had been years in the making.
Niemi explained: “The idea came from Patrik Borg. He’s a top-notch nutritionist in London but I’ve known him since we played together for the Finland under-16s national team.
“A couple of years ago, we spoke on the phone because he’d just visited one of the top clubs in Spain and saw that their players were drinking beetroot shots before the game.
“He explained about the unique nitrates in beetroot and how they work in the body and I’d never heard of any of this.
“But when I studied it, I realised it’s a regular thing in the Premier League in England, Spain and Germany. It’s especially popular in endurance sports like triathlon and marathons and that sort of stuff.
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“Most people can’t guess that it’s beetroot. They always describe it as a sweeter liquorice taste.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
