Halme made his debut for Leeds on Saturday against Bristol City.
Aapo Halme’s ex-coach Kalle Lehtinen has told Finnish outlet Helsingin Sonomat that the young Leeds United defender shares traits with that of Liverpool legend Sami Hyypia.
Halme, 20, made his Leeds United debut on Saturday afternoon in a 2-0 win over Bristol City, after Sweden international Pontus Jansson joined defenders Luke Ayling and Gaetano Berardi on the sidelines through injury.
The Finland Under-21 international looked calm and assured, as he was one of two debutants who impressed. Goalkeeper Will Huffer also started his first match with a clean sheet, after Bailey Peacock-Farrell had injured his knee in training.
Lehtinen coached Halme at FC Honka where the 6ft 5in colossus played before moving to HJK Helsinki aged just 17, and he reckons the Leeds youngster is similar to that of 105-time Finland international Hyypia.
“He had bad luck at first because of injury. Then he suddenly plays and makes his debut. The Championship is a really tough competition. He’s very much like a young Hyypia. Both let their work speak for itself,” Lehtinen said.
Upon joining Leeds in January 2018 from Helsinki, the talented Halme suffered a foot injury and was sidelined until the end of the 2017-18 season. But his impressive Under-23 appearances have caught Marcelo Bielsa’s eye.
It saw the Argentine turn to Halme over the likes of Conor Shaughnessy and Pascal Struijk to cover the injured Jansson, and he is likely to do the same on Tuesday night when Leeds host Reading at Elland Road.
Leeds fans will be expecting their side to win the match, as they remain third in the Championship table while Paul Clement’s Royals sit in 20th place and have picked up two points from their last possible 15.
Hyypia turned 464 times for Liverpool, helping them win the Champions League, UEFA Cup, two FA Cups, two League Cups, a UEFA SuperCup, and two Community Shields.
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