Brentford Football Club has agreed another ground-breaking international partnership.

The Club’s Category Two Football Academy is set to enter in to an arrangement with Finnish club Käpylän Pallo

This is the second such deal agreed with a European club after a partnership with Icelandic football club UMF Selfoss was signed last year.

Erkki Valla, the Käpylän Pallo Sporting Director, was in West London last week to discuss the deal.

He also spent time at the Brentford FC Training Ground with Academy Director Ose Aibangee.

The partnership is set to be signed before the end of the season.

The arrangement will see players from Brentford’s Youth Team and Development Squad; those aged 17 to 21, going to play in Finland as part of their professional development.

The Bees will also be able to exchange coaching ideas with KäPa, as they are known, and bring players over from Finland on trial.

Ose Aibangee, Brentford FC Academy Director, said: “I was introduced to Erkki and learned about KäPa.

“They are doing some good things with their academy.

“I was impressed with the coaching focus and vision of Erkki and how he wants to develop players.

“They are a lot of similarities with what we are doing at Brentford.

“KäPa take youth development seriously

“We have a number of successful partnerships with teams in and around London for young players.

“The arrangement we put in place with Selfoss last year has worked well so far and this is another way we can make sure the name of Brentford will be known much further afield.

“This is good for the Club in terms of recruitment and exchanging ideas.

“The clubs have similar aspirations in terms of bringing young players through to professional level.”

KäPa are a third tier team in Finland and are not professional.

Erkki, pictured above with Ose, said that any Finnish youngster that wants to be a professional will leave the country sooner or later.

He said his aim was to get the brightest young talent in Finland to KäPa and develop them.

They would then move on to play abroad benefitting KäPa and the player.

Brentford was a club he felt would suit his young players and give them the best chance of succeeding in the professional game.

Erkki said: “If we get a good young player we always think about what is next for them.

“Having a club in England that we have a relationship with means we have a plan in place for the players for the next stage of their development.

“We feel this is a win-win situation.

“Finland does not produce that many good players.

“At KäPa we want to improve the development of young players.

“We can then attract the best with our development plan and the route in to the professional game in England if they are good enough.

“Brentford will be an option for our players.

“We already have players in Finland’s youth teams and are one of the best in our country in terms of academy football.

“This partnership is one part of our plan.

“We have visited other clubs but we want to be partnered with Brentford.”

KäPa were founded in 1956.

They are based in Helsinki and have been predominantly a third tier club.

Ose added: “The Finnish season runs from April to October so our young players can go there on loan during our summer if it will aid their development.

“KäPa are keen to work with us as they see a club with a similar ethos, as we do.

“Finland has produced players such as Jari Litmanen, Sami Hyppiä and Mikael Forssell.

“That is the calibre of players KäPa will look to attract and we can then try and bring that sort of talent to Brentford.

“This is another great deal for the Academy and for the Club and I hope it will bear fruit.”