Goteborg – Elfsborg

Draw specialists Goteborg welcome high-flying Elfsborg to the Ullevi on Monday, as they seek to kick-start their Allsvenskan campaign after the summer break. Having drawn six of their first eight games before the league was paused in May, the hosts will have their work cut out against last year’s runners-up. Finishing 12th last season was a major disappointment for the well-supported club, so manager Mikael Stahre will be keen for his men to hit the ground running against Elfsborg this week.

Elfsborg, meanwhile, were the 2020 season’s surprise package – finishing second behind champions and current leaders Malmo – and have started this year’s campaign in similar fashion. The six-times Swedish champions have not won the title since 2012 and are not fancied to do so this term, but nonetheless were disappointed to slip off the early-season pace with two defeats from their last three outings before the break.

Home advantage and a squad bolstered by a new boss and some experienced signings – who possess genuine, if waning, quality – could be enough to see IFK edge this encounter with one of the league’s most improved sides. Recent results have seen a slight downturn for Elfsborg, so they will suffer another defeat to slip further off the pace in their pursuit of peerless table-toppers Malmo.