Preview: Djurgardens IF vs. IFK Norrkoping - prediction, team news, lineups

The hosts, meanwhile, will guarantee holding onto fourth spot if they can secure three points at Tele2 Arena.

Match preview

Having finished second in Sweden's top flight last season, Djurgarden would have been hoping to kick on this time around to lift the title for the first time since 2019.

However, after collecting only 10 points from their opening eight games of the campaign, even impressively matching that tally across their last four has left them with plenty of groundwork in terms of making up the gap between themselves and Malmo at the top of the table.

Jarnkaminerna are unusual in the modern game in that they have two head coaches, with Kim Bergstrand and Thomas Lagerlof sharing managerial roles at the club since 2018.

After ending Djurgarden's 14-year wait for the title in their first season in charge, it is little surprise that the pair have enjoyed a lengthy period co-habiting the managerial dugout, but last weekend's draw away to IF Elfsborg has left them eight points behind Malmo having played one game more ahead of this weekend's action.

Norrkoping, meanwhile, only finished three points above the relegation places last time out, so they would have had much more modest expectations heading into this season.

IFK enjoyed a golden couple of decades between the early 1940's and early 1960's - winning 11 Swedish tiles between 1943 and 1963 - but they have triumphed only twice since then, most recently in 2015.

Unsurprisingly after enduring a difficult campaign, Rikard Norling was sacked and subsequently replaced with Danish coach Glen Riddersholm, who in the process became the club's first non-Swedish manager since Englishman Colin Toal in 1996.

Riddersholm and his players made an excellent start to the current season by amassing 17 points from their opening eight matches, but three successive defeats since then has seen their forthcoming opponents whizz beyond them in the table ahead of an important meeting on Sunday.

Djurgardens IF Swedish Allsvenskan form:

W

L

W

W

W

D

IFK Norrkoping Swedish Allsvenskan form:

W

W

W

L

L

L

Team News

Djurgarden appear likely to remain without Hampus Finndell, Gustav Wikheim and Elliot Kack due to injury.

Joel Asoro and Victor Edvardsen could return to the hosts' starting XI after surprisingly only being used from the bench during their side's draw against Elfsborg last time out.

Norrkoping, meanwhile, will travel without Arnor Sigurdsson and Jesper Ceesay due to suspension after both players received costly bookings during the defeat to IF Brommapojkama last weekend.

Jean Carlos de Brito remains sidelined due to along-term ACL injury, with Laorent Shabani and An Freyr Skulason the most likely candidates to replace their aforementioned suspended team-mates.

Djurgardens IF possible starting lineup:

Zetterstrom; Johansson, Lofgren, Danielsson, Andersson; Eriksson, Schuller; Asoro, Berg, Fallenius; Edvardsen

IFK Norrkoping possible starting lineup:

Jansson; Eid, Lund, Eriksson, Baggesen; Skulason, Ortmark; Lind, Mistrati, Shabani; Nyman

We say: Djurgardens IF 2-0 IFK Norrkoping

These two sides head into this fixture in contrasting form, with the hosts winning three of their last four matches, and the visitors losing each of their last three games.

As such, we expect Djurgarden to return to winning ways after drawing last time out, with Norrkoping potentially having to wait to put an end to their losing streak.

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