Fresh off the back of ending their three-match losing streak, IFK Norrkoping play host to Degerfors at the Nya Parken in round 16 of the Swedish Allsvenskan on Sunday.
Having failed to win both home and away fixtures last season, the Bruket will head into the weekend looking to get one over the hosts and record successive away wins for the first time since February 2011.
Match preview
After a rough few weeks, Norrkoping returned to winning ways last Sunday as they edged out Mjallby 2-1 when the sides squared off at the Strandvallen Stadium.
Arnor Traustason rebounded home his missed penalty in the sixth minute to put the visitors ahead and after doubling the lead from the spot in the 75th minute, substitute Imam Jagne pulled one back for the Hallevik outfit.
Norrkoping were previously on a run of seven consecutive games without a win across all competitions, claiming just two points from a possible 18 in the league and losing 2-1 against AIK in a friendly on June 26.
Glen Riddersholm's men have now picked up six wins, four draws and lost five of their 15 matches to collect 22 points and sit sixth in the Allsvenskan table, level on points with Kalmar and Hammarby.
While Norrkoping will be looking to build on last Sunday's result, they have struggled to get going on home turf, where they are on a run of four defeats and one draw in their last five matches since their 2-0 victory over Hammarby on May 4.
Degerfors, on the other hand, were sent crashing back to earth last Saturday when they suffered a 3-0 thrashing at the hands of Sirius on home turf.
In a one-sided affair at the Stora Valla, goals from Wessam Abou Ali, Daniel Stensson and Joakim Persson helped the Blasvart cruise to their sixth win of the season.
Prior to that, Degerfors snapped their five-match winless run on July 8 when they came from behind to beat Brommapojkarna 2-1 courtesy of second-half goals from Johan Martensson and Erik Lindell.
Tobias Solberg's men have picked up 14 points from their 16 league matches so far to occupy 13th place in the standings, just one point above AIK in the relegation playoff spot.
Degerfors' underwhelming campaign has been owing to their struggles away from home, where they currently hold the division's worst record, having picked up three points from their seven matches.
Next up for the Bruket is an opposing side who have won each of their last two meetings and are unbeaten in six of the last seven encounters between the teams, claiming four wins and one draw since May 2010.
Team News
Norrkoping remain without Brazilian defender Jean Carlos de Brito, who has been out of action since March 2022 through an ACL injury.
Fellow defender Jesper Ceesay has missed the last five matches after coming off injured against Brommapojkarna on June 3, while Isak Ssewankambo is currently recuperating from a muscle problem.
Swedish midfielder Christopher Telo is yet to feature for the hosts this year through a severe injury and will play no part in this weekend's matchup.
Meanwhile, Degerfors will take to the pitch without Dijan Vukojevic and Nikola Djurdjic, who have been ruled out through ACL injuries.
Nigerian striker Fortune Bassey missed last Saturday's game against Sirius through a muscle injury and is a major doubt for the visitors.
IFK Norrkoping possible starting lineup:
Jansson; Eid, Eriksson, Gunnarsson, Baggesen; Traustason, Hammershoj-Mistrati, Ortmark; Khazeni, Nyman, Lind
Degerfors possible starting lineup:
Rossbach; Bouzaiene, Granath, Bergqvist, Ohlsson, Gyau; Orqvist, Mammar, Gravius; Lindgren, Abdulla
We say: IFK Norrkoping 2-1 Degerfors
Buoyed by their win over Mjallby, Norrkoping will be with sky-high confidence as they look to put together a fine run of form. They have enjoyed the better of this fixture and we are backing them to edge out the visitors, who have managed just two wins away from home since the turn of the year.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joshua Ojele
