Just one week on from their previous league encounter, Halmstads BK and Hacken are gearing up for another meeting in the Swedish Allsvenskan.

HBK were thumped 4-1 by their rivals last weekend, and the club will be looking for some serious retribution when they take on the Wasps at Orjans Vall this Sunday.

Match preview

Halmstads are yet to find their feet this season, with the club winning just five of their 15 Allsvenskan matches and scoring just 14 goals in the process.

Last week’s heavy defeat at Hacken marked HBK’s fifth defeat by a three-goal margin this season – a result which leaves manager Johan Lindholm under growing pressure.

Things were seemingly getting better for Halmstads at the start of June and July as the team picked up a couple of notable victories over Djurgarden and AIK Stockholm. However, backing up each win with a defeat has prevented the side from building any momentum.

Halmstads boast a strong home record over Hacken, winning their last three head-to-head matches at Orjans Vall, keeping three clean sheets along the way. Lindholm will be hoping for more of the same as his men look to shake off their inconsistent form.

While HBK are going through mixed emotions, things at Hacken are getting exciting as the club marked their return to European competition for the third season running.

Jens Gustafsson and his men progressed to the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League with a 3-2 aggregate win over Slovakia’s Spartak Trnava this week. The club's reward for their efforts is an exciting clash with Belgian heavyweights Anderlecht.

Before the Wasps can begin to plan for their latest European excursion, they will be looking to do another job on Halmstad and continue to climb the standings.

Hacken have won their last two Allsvenskan games, which has seen them jump to eighth spot in the standings – leaving them 11 points adrift of the top three with half of the season remaining.

The Wasps are unbeaten in four games across all competitions, and they will certainly fancy their chances of making it five as they take on an unpredictable Halmstads side.

Halmstads BK Swedish Allsvenskan form:

L L W L W L

Hacken Swedish Allsvenskan form:

W D L L W W

Hacken form (all competitions): 

L L W W W D

Team News

Halmstads head into the fixture without Gustav Friberg, who is still struggling with a ligament injury, while Andre Boman remains a doubt following a foot problem.

The likes of Filip Gustafsson, Harun Ibrahim and Naeem Mohammed have all recovered from their recent injuries and are available for selection.

Hacken, meanwhile, are dealing with a long absentee list, with six players currently out on the sidelines.

Peter Abrahamsson and Jacob Laursen are expected to return later this month, but the same cannot be said about Danilo Al Saed, Johan Hammer, Leo Vaisanen and Brice Wembangomo, who are all recovering from injuries.

Halmstads BK possible starting lineup: Erlandsson; Granath, Kurtulus, Gregor, Olsson, Chrupalla; Allansson, Nilsson, Mohammed; Arvidsson, Agnero

Hacken possible starting lineup: Berisha; Ohman, Hilvenius, Lode, Lundqvist; Holm, Gustafson, Mitrovic, Rygaard, Nioule; Brusberg

We say: Halmstads BK 2-1 Hacken

Halmstads have won their last two home games to nil, and we are backing them to get a little bit of retribution over Hacken.

The Wasps have been busy with European football, and the stress of injuries is likely to impact their results at some point.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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