In search of only their second victory of the 2023 Swedish Allsvenskan campaign, IFK Goteborg host Kalmar on Sunday at Gamla Ullevi.
The former 18-time champions in the Swedish top flight are coming off a 0-0 draw at home to Halmstad, as they remain in the relegation zone with 10 points, while Kalmar are sixth in the table, winning their previous league fixture 1-0 over Varbergs BolS.
Match preview
For nearly a half-century, IFK Goteborg have been a permanent fixture in the Swedish top flight, but midway through the 2023 domestic campaign, their place in the Allsvenskan next season remains in jeopardy.
Being relegated is something this club have not experienced since the 1970s, when they competed in the second tier of Swedish football from 1971-76, and there is a lot of work for them to do if they are to avoid that fate, as Goteborg are currently four points behind AIK and a spot in this competition next year.
Goteborg are still considered one of the "Big Three" football clubs in Sweden, along with AIK and Malmo, but they have not looked anything like that throughout the campaign, and with a mere 10 points after 16 league fixtures, it is the fewest this side have ever accumulated at this stage of a domestic season in the 2000s.
Six of those 10 points have come at home, including their only victory of the campaign (6-0 over Degerfors), while they have only conceded one first-half strike domestically at Gamla Ullevi all season.
As sharp as they have been defensively, one of only five clubs in the Swedish top flight who have conceded fewer than 20 league goals this year (19), Kamraterna have not been clinical in the attacking third, scoring the second-fewest goals so far (13).
Jens Berthel Askou has inherited a difficult situation, to say the least, and the 40-year-old who guided Havnar Boltfelag to a league and cup double in the Faroe Islands in 2020 is still seeking his first league victory since taking charge in early June, claiming a point in three of his previous four domestic matches on the sidelines.
Throughout the 2020s, Kalmar have been consistently in the top half of the table, and that has been the case so far this season, currently on 25 points, their highest total after 16 domestic affairs since 2014 (27).
Despite a solid start to the campaign, KFF have a lot of ground to make up if they are to earn a place in Europe next season, trailing Malmo by 10 points for third and a qualifying spot in the Europa Conference League.
Henrik Jensen has only seen his side lose one domestic contest in 2023 when scoring the opening goal, though their dreams of advancing into the next stage of the Europa Conference League this year took a hit on Thursday when they squandered a 1-0 half-time advantage, losing 2-1 to Pyunik in the first leg of that second round qualifier.
Three of their five defeats in league play have occurred away from home, losing 3-1 at Hammarby in their previous road contest after claiming at least a point in their three previous encounters outside of Kalmar in this competition.
Roda Broder have not lost a match in Allsvenskan this year when scoring in the opening half, but they have only found the back of the net once this month after 45 minutes.
They are unbeaten in seven successive top-flight fixtures versus Goteborg, including four straight wins, while Kalmar have only suffered one defeat versus IFK this decade and have not conceded in four of the last five matches played against them.
Team News
Emil Salomonsson is not expected to fully recover from his collarbone injury until early September, while Suleiman Abdullahi and Anders Trondsen might not be available for Goteborg until next month due to a stomach issue and a sore muscle, respectively.
Pontus Dahlberg only had to make three stops last weekend to collect his second clean sheet this month, while Gustaf Norlin was the only newcomer to the starting 11 in that encounter, replacing Sebastian Hausner.
Adam Carlen notched the last goal for them in this competition when they played to a 1-1 draw at IF Elfsborg, while their leading scorer, Marcus Berg, has not found the back of the net since converting an 87th-minute penalty on May 21, enabling them to earn a point versus Hammarby (1-1).
Carl Gustafsson is listed as doubtful for Kalmar Sunday because of a concussion, while Jakob Kindberg will likely start in goal as Ricardo Friedrich is suspended following his straight red card last weekend.
An 83-minute penalty in that match from Simon Skrabb was all they would need to come away with three points, his second of the domestic campaign, while Jacob Trenskow had their lone strike earlier this week when they lost the opening leg of their Europa Conference League qualifier.
Mileta Rajovic is tied for fourth in the league regarding goals (seven) but has not found the mark in this competition since firing home the winner on May 28 against Norrkoping (2-1), while Romario has scored six times versus Goteborg, including the winner in this exact fixture last season when Gustafsson also netted in a 2-1 triumph.
IFK Goteborg possible starting lineup:
Dahlberg; Santos, Svensson, Bangsbo, Wendt; Salaou, Carlen, Hagen; Mucolli, Berg, Carlstrand
Kalmar possible starting lineup:
Kindberg; Karlsson, Saetra, Sjostedt, Olafsson; Romario, Gojani, Skrabb; Trenskow, Rajovic, Hummet
We say: IFK Goteborg 1-2 Kalmar
More than halfway through the domestic campaign, IFK still have not sorted out their attacking deficiencies, while Kalmar have scored in all but two of their road contests this year.
We believe the quality and consistency that Kalmar have shown throughout the campaign will be enough to see them extend their winning ways against Blavitt.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joel Lefevre
