Preview: Mjallby AIF vs. Djurgardens IF - prediction, team news, lineups

Having suffered a 2-0 defeat in May's reverse fixture, Anders Torstensson's men will head into the weekend looking to get one over the visitors.

Match preview

Mjallby returned to winning ways last Monday when they edged out a dogged Sirius side 3-2 in a pulsating affair at the Studenternas IP Stadium.

David Lofquist scored a first-half brace to hand the visitors a 2-1 first-half lead, and after Melker Heier levelled matters in the 49th minute, Jacob Bergstrom restored Mjallby's lead with a 77th-minute effort.

Torstensson's men previously saw their three-match unbeaten run in all competitions come to an end on July 16, when they fell to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Norrkoping courtesy of a brace from Arnor Traustason.

While Mjallby will be looking to pick up where they dropped off on Monday, they have struggled for results at home, where they have picked up one point from a possible nine in the league and have won just one of their last five matches across all competitions.

With 22 points from 16 matches, the Hallevik-based outfit are currently eighth in the Allsvenskan standings, level on points with Hammarby and Brommapojkarna.

Elsewhere, Djurgardens' hopes of securing European football this season took a hit on Thursday when they fell to a 2-1 loss against Luzern in the first leg of the Conference League second qualifying round.

Kemal Ademi and Jakub Kadak scored in either half to cancel out Jesper Lofgren's fourth-minute opener and hand Mario Frick's men a vital victory ahead of the second leg in Switzerland.

Kim Bergstrand's men now turn their attention to the Allsvenskan, where they suffered a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of league leaders Elfsborg in last Saturday's clash at the Tele2 Arena.

Prior to that, Djurgardens were on a run of eight consecutive matches without defeat in the league, picking up six wins and two draws since a slender 4-3 loss to Hammarby in May.

The Jarnkaminerna have lost five of their 17 league matches this season while picking up nine wins and three draws to collect 30 points and sit fourth in the table, nine points off league leaders Elfsborg.

Mjallby AIF Swedish Allsvenskan form:

W

L

D

W

L

W

Djurgardens IF Swedish Allsvenskan form:

D

D

W

W

W

L

Djurgardens IF form (all competitions):

D

W

W

W

L

L

Team News

Mjallby will take to the pitch without 21-year-old defender Noah Eile, who is currently suspended after crossing the yellow card threshold with his booking against Sirius.

On the injury front, this weekend's hosts will be without the trio of Jesper Adolfsson, Silas Nwankwo and Adam Petersson, who have all been sidelined through ACL injuries.

Experienced striker Alexander Johansson has missed the last four matches after picking up a knee problem in June and is out of contention for Torstensson's men.

Meanwhile, Djurgardens will be without veteran defender Elliot Kack, who has been out of action since February through a knee problem.

He is joined on the Jarnkaminerna injury table by fellow defender Pierre Bengtsson, who is set to sit out his fourth straight game after coming off injured against Varnamo on July 8.

Rasmus Schuller and 37-year-old striker Haris Radetinac are both suspended due to accumulated yellow cards in the league and will play no part in this weekend's matchup.

Mjallby AIF possible starting lineup:

Tornqvist; Brorsson, Rosler, Pettersson; Johansson, J Gustavsson, V Gustafsson, Jagne, Stahl; Fenger, Lofquist

Djurgardens IF possible starting lineup:

Zetterstrom; Johansson, Lofgren, Danielson, Kaib; Finndell, Berg, Bergvall; Fallenius, Asoro, Wikheim

We say: Mjallby AIF 1-1 Djurgardens IF

While Djurgardens boasts the firepower needed to arrest their slump in form, this weekend's tie pits them against a spirited Mjallby side who are unbeaten in four of their last five matches. We predict the hosts will be tough to crack and hold out for a share of the spoils at the Strandvallen.

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