Molde vs Djurgardens IF Match Analysis and Prediction

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Two Scandinavian giants meet on matchday five of the Europa Conference League as Norway’s Molde play host to Sweden’s Djurgardens IF at the Aker Stadion on Thursday.

Both teams are in commandings positions to secure progression to the knockout rounds, with the winner of this tie likely to finish top of the group and advance directly to the last 16 of the competition.

Molde are seeking to regain their title as Norway’s top side after the emergence of Bodo/Glimt in the Eliteserien and the Europa League over the past two years.

On the domestic front, Molde are cruising towards a first league title since 2019 having established a commanding 15-point gap between themselves and the chasing lot in Norway’s top flight.

In the Europa Conference League, Molde sit in second place in Group F, having picked up seven points from their opening four matches in the competition.

Their only defeat so far came agains Thursday’s opponents in a 3-2 victory for Djurgardens on matchday two, so returning the favour this time around would be a real statement.

Despite an impressive 4-0 victory over bottom side GIF Sundsvall in the Swedish league on Monday, Djurgardens look set to miss out on a first Allsvenskan title since 2019, as Hacken maintained their six-point gap at the top with just two matches remaining.

However, the standings in the Europa Conference League are more favourable for Djurgardens, who are currently sitting top of Group F having picked up 10 points from the first four matches.

Kim Bergstrand’s side took a 4-0 lead against Belgian giants Gent inside 500 minutes last time out and managed to hold on to the last minute to take all three points, a result that extended the gap to six points between themselves and the non-qualification spots in the group.

Molde vs Djurgardens IF head to head

These two teams have previously met on just two occasions, where they have each claimed a victory, scoring three goals each in the process.

Djurgardens 0-1 Molde 05/09/17

Djurgardens 3-2 Molde 15/09/22

Molde latest home form

Molde have recently been on a good run of form at home, as they have been unbeaten in their six most recent matches. They managed to defeat Rosenborg 2-1 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 13 goals and conceded just one.

Molde 0-0 Gent 08/09/22

Molde 3-0 Aalesund 18/09/22

Molde 3-0 Shamrock Rovers 06/10/22

Molde 5-0 HamKam 09/10/22

Molde 2-1 Rosenborg 23/10/22

Molde latest away form

Molde have recently been on a relatively good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their eight most recent matches. They managed to defeat Lillestrom 1-0 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 10 goals and conceded five.

Jerv 2-4 Molde 11/09/22

Djurgarden 3-2 Molde 15/09/22

Tromso 0-1 Molde 01/10/22

Shamrock Rovers 0-2 Molde 13/10/22

Lillestorm 0-1 Molde 16/10/22

Djurgardens IF latest home form

Djurgardens IF have recently kept a mixed run of form at home, as they have lost two of their five most recent matches. They managed to defeat GIF Sundsvall 4-0 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 12 goals and conceded five.

Djurgarden 3-0 IFK Goteborg 18/09/22

Djurgarden 0-1 Hacken 09/10/22

Djurgarden 4-2 Gent 13/10/22

Djurgarden 1-2 AIK 16/10/22

Djurgarden 4-0 GIF Sundsvall 24/10/22

Djurgardens IF latest away form

Djurgardens IF have recently been on a relatively good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their seven most recent matches. They defeated Malmo 3-2 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored four goals and conceded five.

Shamrock Rovers 0-0 Djurgarden 08/09/22

Hammarby 0-0 Djurgarden 11/09/22

Degerfors 3-0 Djurgarden 01/10/22

Gent 0-1 Djurgarden 06/10/22

Malmo 2-3 Djurgarden 20/10/22

Molde news

Molde have a number of absent players for the contest, with Kristoffer Haraldseid and Bjom Sigurdarson both out with knee injuries until the start of November.

Eirik Ulland Andersen is a long-term absentee for the hosts after suffering a cruciate ligament injury in May and will not feature in the remaining group-stage matches.

Djurgardens IF news

Defender Hjalmar Ekdal sustained a muscle injury on in Djurgarden’s last Europa Conference League game against Gent, and is unavailable for this contest.

Elliot Kack will be joined by Ekdal in the club’s medical room, a place where the 33-year-old has been since picking up a knee injury against Mjallby in April.

Prediction and Odds

Two teams with the best defensive records in their respectively domestic league meet on Thursday, so we are not expecting many goals in what promises to be a cagey affair.

Molde have recently has power of sting in front of goal in home matches across all competitions, but Djurgarden will be the biggest test here.

Odds: 1 2.30 X 2.02 2 2.22