Desperate to move back clear of the bottom three in the Swedish Allsvenskan table, Varnamo will welcome Sirius to Finnvedsvallen on Sunday.
A three-game winless streak has seen the hosts drop to 12th spot, one point above the relegation playoff place, while their visitors moved three points ahead with a return to winning ways last time out.
Match preview
© Imago
Varnamo return to Finnvedsvallen on Sunday with the aim of arresting their slide in the Swedish Allsvenskan and moving back ahead of the relegation zone, having dropped into a concerning position in recent weeks.
Following a fifth-placed finish last time around and a tricky start to the new season, they moved onto 17 points from 13 outings on their return from the mid-season break in early July by beating Goteborg 2-0 on home turf thanks to goals from Johnbosco Samuel Kalu and Ajdin Zeljkovic.
Anes Mravac's side have since failed to add another notch to their wins column in three further attempts, though, firstly visiting second-placed Djurgardens and suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat, before coming from behind to draw 2-2 with Hacken thanks to Gustav Engvall's goal and Kalu's leveller deep into injury time.
Aiming to build on that comeback and move away from the bottom of the division with a return to winning ways, they most recently visited Halmstad on Saturday and again fell just short, leaving empty-handed as Birnir Snaer Ingason netted the only goal of the game for the hosts around the hour mark.
As a result of their recent tough run, Varnamo now find themselves 12th in the Allsvenskan table, just one point above the relegation playoff place and two above the automatic drop zone, and they will be desperate to bounce back and extend that cushion with a sixth league victory of the campaign on Sunday.
In their way stand a visiting side who have majorly helped their own standing in the bottom half of the table in recent weeks, moving ahead of Sunday's hosts with an upturn in form.
After a tough start of their own to the 2024 season, Sirius sat on just 12 points from 11 league outings, but they were able to go into the mid-season break on the back of a 5-1 thrashing of Norrkoping before returning to pleasing form in July.
From their four attempts since, the Blasvart have added two more notches to their wins column to climb clear of the bottom three, firstly beating GAIS 3-1 between narrow defeats to third-placed Mjallby and league leaders Malmo, having led the latter 3-2 through Leo Walta, Adam Wikman and Joakim Persson, only for Isaac Kiese Thelin and Nils Zatterstrom to turn the game on its head and snatch all three points for the visitors in the final 10 minutes.
A second consecutive meeting with Malmo then followed last weekend, and Christer Mattiasson's side were able to defy the odds and bounce back with a victory at Eleda Stadion on that occasion, having stood strong after Walta put them ahead early in the second half.
Now with plenty of renewed confidence in the camp following that eye-catching result, and having climbed into the top half with their upturn in form, now leading their hosts by three points and the bottom three by four, Sirius will set out to continue their improved run with a second straight triumph on Sunday to strengthen their standing in eighth spot.
Team News
Varnamo may remain without Gustav Engvall heading into Sunday's contest, with the forward, who has contributed three goals and three assists in the Allsvenskan so far this term, having missed last weekend's defeat to Halmstad.
If he remains sidelined, Johnbosco Samuel Kalu may again operate as a lone striker, having notched up seven league goals this season, while fellow danger man Ajdin Zeljkovic will offer further attacking threat from the left wing.
Wenderson will fight to return to the midfield from the outset, having settled for a substitute appearance last time out with Simon Thern, Luke Le Roux and Albin Lohikangas preferred in the engine room, while Emin Grozdanic and Michael Steinwender should again partner up at the heart of the defence if key man Hampus Nasstrom is sidelined again after also missing the Halmstad contest.
Sirius should be unchanged from last weekend's impressive away victory over Malmo, with Leo Walta continuing to play a key role in the midfield having scored three goals in their last four outings.
They could remain without key striker Yousef Salech, who has missed their last two games after hitting a team-high tally of nine goals in their first 14 Allsvenskan outings this term, meaning Noel Milleskog could again lead the line having managed five of his own so far.
Walta will likely be joined in the centre by Daniel Stensson and Adam Wikman, while Patrick Nwadike and Malcolm Jeng are bound to continue their partnership in the middle of the defence after an impressive clean sheet last time out.
Varnamo possible starting lineup:
Rasheed; Larsson, Grozdanic, Steinwender, Kotto; Alsalkhadi, Thern, Le Roux, Wenderson, Zeljkovic; Kalu
Sirius possible starting lineup:
Tannander; Castegren, Nwadike, Jeng, Widgren; Walta, Stensson, Wikman; Persson, Milleskog, Ljungberg
We say: Varnamo 1-2 Sirius
While both teams have experienced very similar Allsvenskan campaigns thus far, it is Sirius who come into Sunday's meeting with the momentum, and we back them to make it consecutive three-point hauls against a Varnamo side lacking confidence in the midst of another rut.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
