Allsvenskan leaders Mjallby AIF face a tricky trip to Hammarby in a rearranged fixture this Thursday evening in the Swedish top flight.
Hammarby’s European involvement means this fixture has been brought forward almost two months, to allow Kim Hellberg‘s side the chance to focus on reaching the Conference League proper in August.
Match preview
Mjallby’s win on Monday night means Hammarby enter this fixture now outside the top three, despite a very strong start to the campaign themselves.
The potential title race in the Allsvenskan looks devilishly difficult to call after 10 matches, with the top four separated by just two points, and champions Malmo in hot pursuit in fifth, and Hammarby have lost just one of their first 10 games, taking an impressive 21 points in that time, but their solitary defeat did come away to their upcoming visitors.
Hellberg’s men made the challenging trip to AIK on Sunday and left with a satisfactory 0-0 draw, which keeps both sides well in the hunt for top spot, and the hosts will be confident of continuing that charge considering they have taken 13 points from a possible 15 at the 3Arena this season.
Mjallby will have something to say about that though, as they seek a first-ever major honour this season.
Only coming up from the third tier in 2018, Mjallby’s rise has been impressive, and they are now a well-established top-flight club, coming close to qualifying for Europe last season.
Without any continental commitments though, manager Anders Torstensson can focus solely on the Allsvenskan this season, and it may require their full attention, given how tight it is at present.
Seven wins from their last eight matches is a sensational run of form though, and that continued on Monday when Abdoulie Manneh netted the only goal in a success over Brommapojkarna which took them to the top of the table with 23 points.
Mjallby’s tally of 22 goals is the best in the Allsvenskan so far, and Torstensson’s men are still in single digits for goals conceded, so all the signs are positive heading deeper into the season.
Team News
Hammarby are set to be without players all over the field, as defender Frederik Winther and midfielder Dennis Collander are missing due to knee injuries, while Jusef Erabi is set to be absent in attack.
The hosts will more than likely look towards Nahir Besara for inspiration given his recent form, as the experienced midfielder has three goals in his last four games, and is only one goal off the top of the scoring charts.
Mjallby will have Axel Noren back from suspension, but Tony Miettinen and Adam Petersson are set to remain on the sidelines for this trip to Stockholm.
The visitors are the league’s top scorers and they have shared the goals around so far, with Monday’s match-winner Manneh top of the charts with six, while Nicklas Rojkjaer (five) and Herman Johansson (four) have also had an eye for goal this season.
Hammarby possible starting lineup:
Hahn; Skoglund, Eriksson, Vagic, Pinas; Karlsson, Tekie, Besara; Madjed, Boudah, Tounekti
Mjallby AIF possible starting lineup:
Tornqvist; Noren, Iqbal, T Pettersson, Stroud; Gustavsson, Rojkjaer, Gustafson; Johansson, Bergstrom, Manneh
We say: Hammarby 1-1 Mjallby AIF
Hammarby were a distant second behind Malmo last season, and have not won the title since 2001, but a win here would be a huge statement of intent against the current league leaders.
However, even though they are unbeaten at home this season, Mjallby will be very difficult opponents, considering they have won seven of their last eight Allsvenskan matches, and this one is tough to call.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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