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IFK Norrköping started this season in a brilliant way and led the series for a time with seven points. But in mid-July, the results started to go against it. Three rounds ago, they had two wins in their last eleven games. But now they have two wins (against Djurgården and Kalmar), and a cross (against Malmö), behind them and are second on a limp table.
Manager Jens Gustafsson is hoping his team would come out of the tough times with Sunday’s 2-1 win against Djurgården and now explains why things started to go wrong this summer.
– I think IFK Norrköping’s expectations were greatly strengthened at the start we had, which became a burden for us. I think only one team can meet those kinds of expectations at the Allsvenskan, and that’s Malmö. Given the experience they have both in the team and in the association. So it certainly became a burden on us, says Gustafsson and continues:
– So we probably stuck with the good stuff and we thought I’d give more, before turning around, which meant we lost too many games. Before we take the balance to the right to start working again. During that period, we also had a lot of players who had been in good shape but dropped in shape. At the same time, we had a large staff that made it challenging to act around it as well.
Additionally, Gustafsson also wants to point out that referee level has played a role in the previously bleak trend.
– When you talk about that period, I also think it is important that you address the kind of evaluations that we receive against us. I also think he received evaluations against us today (against Djurgården). I think we are still in a situation where the level of valuation has been decisive for us. It didn’t happen in this match, but it actually still bothers us that we end up in that kind of situation.
– When I talk about the level of evaluation, they are negative things that have happened to us. This means that we go out (to the game) with little patience. In that sense, we, and especially I, must improve. In this match I think we should approve a 3-0 goal (Henrik Castegren goal was ruled out because Christoffer Nyman was judged to get in the way from an offside position) and I cannot for the life of me understand the warning that Isak Bergmann Johannesson got. Things happen that I have trouble understanding. And I’ve been pretty quiet now when it comes down to it.
What did you screw up in terms of balance?
– Above all, we focus more on our defensive game. We became a little more consistent. I think it got a bit tricky, I changed too much in our starting positions. In the desire to find the solution, it probably became a bit complicated. When we finally land a consistent way of playing, we also find a way to go. I hope we can continue like this.
If even the players feel that the verdict has upset the team and the performances this year? Yes. Key player Simon Thern sums up the frustration as follows:
– Have they seen (in the media) what we have against us? Have you seen everything?
Thern continues:
– So, I don’t like to talk about judges. They do the best they can and everything. But f … it’s clearly excruciatingly exhausting when you get a lot bouncing against. So much in the performance part, that we don’t really catch up, and then we get penalties, goals that are discarded and are things that nobody knows why. Not even the opponents. If you ask an opponent: “What happened?”, Then he responds: “I don’t know.” So it is clear that it seems that many things go against and it was in relation to the period in which we were the heaviest as a team.
– I do not want to throw shit at the referees, but it is clear that we have received many sentences against us that have been decisive for the images of matches and matches.
Right-back Linus Wahlqvist is also on the same page. When asked if the referee level has been turned into a snack bar internally, Wahlqvist responds:
– Of course you talk about it if you get tired of it. When there is a situation in every game, you get tired of it. But what to do? They are human too.
On the match against Djurgården, coach Jens Gustafsson says the following:
– This was a difficult match beforehand, and it was. I think we as a team performed with great sacrifice for 90 minutes, especially in the defensive game, where we had to spend a lot of time. It certainly has to do with the fact that we made it 1-0 early, which characterized the match. Everyone lined up in a good way and there were many offensive players who sacrificed for the best of the team.
– We also had occasions where we played good football and some good counterattacks. We are very satisfied with three points, especially considering the trend that we have had for a long time. Now we show that we are moving away from him. So I’m very happy with that and incredibly proud of the way the players perform on the field.
