Halmstads BK face Östers IF in a friendly match on Saturday 3 October. The fixture is a key part of preparations for the upcoming league game away to IF Elfsborg on 11 October.
The training match follows a mixed period for Halmstad. The team's last outing was an important 2-1 home win over AIK Stockholm on 20 September. That victory ended a run of two consecutive away defeats to IFK Göteborg and Degerfors IF. The side currently sits 16th in the Allsvenskan with 14 points from 22 games.
Form going into the match
Halmstads BK have won three of their last five matches. Besides the win over AIK, they also secured three points against Kalmar FF and Skövde AIK in late August. The team's most recent starting XI, used against AIK, featured Rönning in goal and a back four of Boman, Gregor, Wallentin and Kaib. In midfield, Arvidsson, Allansson, Mäenpää and Carneil played with Faraj and Zeljkovic leading the attack.
Östers IF enter the match following a 1-3 home loss to IFK Norrköping last month. Their team against Norrköping started with Lundahl Persson in goal and a defensive line of Varmanen, Gyamfi, Hedlund and Olsson. A similar 4-3-3 formation can be expected with attackers like Uddenäs, Jawla and Tamminen.
The friendly is a final test before the tough away trip to Elfsborg, who are fourth in the table. After the Östers match, a week of focused training awaits before Halmstad returns to league action on 11 October.
