Sarpsborg 08 will be looking to make five consecutive home wins against Sandefjord when the two sides square off at the Sarpsborg Stadion in round 17 of the Eliteserien on Sunday.
The Hvalfangerne, who are currently rooted to the bottom of the table, head into the weekend in search of a third league victory on the bounce for the first time since July 2021 as they aim to pull clear of the danger zone.
Match preview
© Imago
Sarpsborg were left spitting feathers last Sunday as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Lillestrom after throwing away a two-goal lead in the second half at the Arasen Stadion.
In-form striker Henrik Wendel Meister netted a brace to put visitors in a commanding lead heading into half time but Ruben Gabrielsen pulled one back for Lillestrom two minutes after the break before Marius Lundemo restored parity in the 96th minute.
Prior to that, Sarpsborg picked up back-to-back wins over Haugesund and Rosenborg before playing out a 1-1 draw with Brann on July 20, when Meister and Aune Heggebo scored stoppage-time goals in a frenetic end to the game.
Despite last weekend's results, head coach Christian Michelsen will be delighted with his side's performance in recent weeks as they have now picked up eight points from their last four matches, having managed just 10 points in their first 12 games to start the league campaign.
With 18 points from 16 matches, Sarpsborg are currently 12th in the Eliteserien standings, one point above the danger zone, but could move into seventh place with all three points this weekend.
Elsewhere, a rejuvenated Sandefjord side made it back-to-back league wins for just the first time this year as they edged out Haugesund in a seven-goal thriller when the sides squared off at the Komplett Arena last Sunday.
Jakob Maslo Dunsby netted twice and set up another to cancel out Sondre Liseth's 23rd-minute strike and turn the game on its head, and after Bruno Leite and Parfait Bizoza scored for Haugesund to level matters, Eman Markovic kept his cool under pressure as he converted his 94th-minute penalty to hand the hosts all three points.
This followed a stunning 2-1 victory over league leaders Bodo/Glimt on July 13 when Alexander Ruud Tveter and Stian Kristiansen scored in either half to see off the Glimt and end their run of eight consecutive league games without a win.
While Sandefjord have picked up the pace of late, it is worth noting that their four league wins this season have all come on home turf and they head into the weekend as the only side yet to taste victory on the road, claiming just four points from eight matches — the division's poorest away record so far.
While Andreas Tegstrom's men could surge into eighth place with all three points this weekend, they have failed to win any of their last 10 visits to the Sarpsborg Stadion, losing eight and claiming two draws since a 3-0 victory in October 2012.
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Team News
Victor Emanuel Halvorsen was forced off injured on the 30th-minute mark against Lillestrom last time out and the 20-year-old midfielder is a major doubt for Sunday's game.
In his absence, veteran midfielder Serge-Junior Martinsson Ngouali will push for a starting role, teaming up with Stefan Johansen and 21-year-old Aimar Sher in the centre of the park.
Niklas Sandberg continues his lengthy spell on the sidelines after picking up an ankle problem back in May and the Norwegian forward will also play no part in this weekend's tie.
They are joined on the club's injury table by 31-year-old defender Magnar Odegaard, who has been sidelined since coming off injured against Kristiansund on June 2.
As for Sandefjord, 22-year-old forward Darrell Tibell is out of contention for this weekend's clash as he recovers from an injury that he sustained against Rosenborg on April 1.
Off the back of an impressive attacking display against Haugesund, we expect the Hvalfangerne to field an unchanged front three of Dunsby, Markovic and 33-year-old Tveter, who has six goal involvements this season.
Sarpsborg 08 possible starting lineup:
Eriksson; Christiansen, Tebo, Skipper, Hiim; Sher, Halvorsen; Reinhardsen, Johansen, Orjasaester; Meister
Sandefjord possible starting lineup:
Keto; Egeli, Berglie, Gjone, Cheng; Mork, Ottosson, Mettler; Dunsby, Tveter, Markovic
We say: Sarpsborg 08 2-1 Sandefjord
Sarpsborg and Sandefjord have enjoyed a solid run of results in recent weeks and we anticipate a thrilling contest at the Sarpsborg Stadion. However, Michelsen's men boast an outstanding home record in this fixture and we fancy them to come out on top once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
