Sixth-placed Stromsgodset take on 10th-placed Odd at the Marienlyst Stadion on Sunday afternoon in the Norwegian Eliteserien.
The hosts trail the European places by four points, while the visitors hold just a two-point lead over the relegation places.
Match preview
A 4-0 defeat on the opening day against Molde could have marked the beginning of a difficult season for Stromsgodset, but Jorgen Isnes's men bounced back in great fashion, winning six and drawing one of their next seven games.
A sudden dip in form was to follow as they lost four in a row across all competitions, but they have recovered once again with victories in each of their last two outings.
They come into this one sat on 16 points after 10 games played, leaving them just four points behind Molde, who occupy the final European qualification spot, and Stromsgodset have the advantage of a game in hand on four of the five teams above them.
Meetings between these two have been extremely tight in recent years with each side winning one of the last four encounters, the remaining two ending in draws.
Stromsgodset have, however, been the dominant team in the Marienlyst Stadion as they have gone undefeated at home against Odd in all of the last four and only lost one of the last 13.
The visitors come into this one having brought an end to their own winless streak in their last outing with a 2-1 victory over Lillestrom after going six matches without a victory prior to that.
Kenneth Dokken's men have struggled to pick up points against teams that are above them in the table, managing just one win in the seven games they have played against those above them.
Their defence will have to show signs of improvement if they wish to take anything from this upcoming fixture, with Odd currently having the second-worst defensive record of any side in the division with 21 goals conceded in 11 outings, while they have also scored the second-fewest.
Team News
The hosts will have to continue without the services of both Ernest Boahene and Ole Enersen, with the duo not expected to return until late June or early July.
Sondre Hanssen will also remain on the treatment table with a back injury that is expected to keep him out of the team until August at the earliest.
Eirik Andersen and Jonas Therkelsen were both taken off in the last 20 minutes of their side's 3-1 victory last weekend and are doubtful for this one.
As for the visitors, they are set to be without a number of players due to both injury problems and suspension.
Leon Hien, Sondre Johansen, Steffen Hagen, Torgeir Borven and Zakaria Mugeese have all missed a series of matches and are set to miss out once again here.
Solomon Owusu and Faniel Tewelde could also be doubts after being forced off in their previous game due to injuries, while Etzaz Hussain will miss out due to a suspension.
Stromsgodset possible starting lineup:
Bratveit; Vilsvik, Taaje, Valsvik, Dahl, Tomasson; Stengel, Krasniqi, Farji; Therkelsen, Melkersen
Odd possible starting lineup:
Hansen; Ruud, Miettinen, Ivancevic, Baccay; Jorgensen; Bang-Kittilsen, Svendsen, Aas, Njie; Ingebrigtsen
We say: Stromsgodset 2-0 Odd
Odd have struggled both defensively and offensively so far this season, and with Stromsgodset coming into this game on the back of successive victories, we believe the home side will win this one.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
body check tags ::
Previews by email
