Varnamo find themselves rooted to the foot of the Allsvenskan table after a terrible start to the Swedish season and desperately need a win on the road at Norrkoping to give themselves even a glimmer of hope.
After 15 games, Varnamo have collected just seven points but their only win all season did come in their last match against Djurgarden so boss Arne Sandsto will be hoping that's a turning point in their campaign.
Varnamo looked doomed after losing their first seven games of the season but they've improved a bit and have lost just three of their last eight.
They now travel to a Norrkoping side who sit eight points above them in the table so a win for the rock-bottom club could make things interesting in the battle to dodge the drop.
Norrkoping are in poor form themselves, going five matches without a win, and that slump has left them perilously close to the drop zone.
Boss Martin Falk could do with a confidence-boosting win and if his side flop once more against the team sitting bottom of the table then alarm bells will start to ring.
How the bookies view it: Hosts with the most
Despite their recent slump, Norrkoping are favourites for this one at 21/20 with BoyleSports. Varnamo are 15/8 outsiders and the draw pays 13/5.
Recent head to head: Home is where the hurt is
Norrkoping have held the upper hand in this fixture, winning four of the last seven meetings and losing just twice. The last three clashes have all been away wins, with a 4-0 win for Varnamo on their last visit followed by two victories for Norrkoping on the road.
Players to watch: Nyman's the man
Christoffer Nyman is enjoying a prolific season for Norrkoping, netting eight times in just 13 appearances. He scored last time out in the loss to Malmo and is 5/4 for anytime scorer with Bet365, which looks decent value against the team propping up the table.
Mohammad Alsalkhadi scored Varnamo's winner off the bench last time out and that could earn him a start here. He's 3/1 at Bet365 to grab another goal.
Probable line-ups
Norkopping are set to be without keeper David Mitov Nilsson and midfield duo Kevin Hoog Jansson and Stephen Bolma. Varnamo's squad has a clean bill of health and Alsalkhadi could replace Kenan Bilalovic up front.
Norrkoping: Andersson, Oppong, Watson, Kalley, Neffati, Fransson, Sigurgeirsson, Lushaku, Nyman, Traustason, Moberg Karlsson.
Varnamo: Keto, Rapp, Andersson, Grozdanic, Coulibaly, Johansson, Thern, Adjei, Zeljkovic, Antonsson, Alsalkhadi.
Anything else catch the eye?
Although Varnamo finally found a way to win in their last game, the goal that got them over the line came right at the end. Even though Norrkoping are in poor form, they should still have enough to beat a team who have scored just once in their last four games.
The 21/20 on offer for a Norrkoping win looks decent and you can boost the odds to 6/4 by adding on over 1.5 goals.
The last seven meetings have all hit double figures for corners and we even saw 21 in one game when Varnamo came calling in 2023. That makes over 11.5 corners worth a punt at 20/21 with BoyleSports while adding on just one more corner takes you to 6/4.
GambleAware