Elfsborg sparked wild celebrations after they were crowned Swedish champions following a 1-1 draw with Atvidaberg on Sunday. Elfsborg finished on 59 points, two ahead of surprise runner-ups Haecken who beat Sundsvall 2-1.
Elfsborg sparked wild celebrations after they were crowned Swedish champions following a 1-1 draw with Atvidaberg on Sunday. Elfsborg finished on 59 points, two ahead of surprise runner-ups Haecken who beat Sundsvall 2-1.
Malmo finished third on 56 points, with AIK narrowly missing out on European football next season as they finished fourth on 55. "I feel great," a delighted Elfsborg coach Jorgen Lennartsson told C More TV.
Elfsborg, from the town of Boras 60 kilometers east of Gothenburg, started the day with a two-point lead over nearest rivals Malmo FF, who had travelled to Stockholm hoping to beat AIK and that Elfsborg would slip up. But a Stefan Ishizaki goal on the half-hour gave Elfsborg the lead, and when Malmo conceded a goal to AIK's Mohammed Bangura after 33 minutes in Stockholm their title challenge was all but over. Viktor Lundberg netted what was to prove the final league goal at the Rasunda stadium to give AIK a 2-0 victory.
The stadium, which hosted the 1958 World Cup final, is due to be demolished after the season ends. In Boras, Viktor Prodell scored an equaliser for Atvidaberg but that could not dampen the celebrations of the Elfsborg fans. "We were aware of the other result all the time," Lennartsson told C More.
"If Malmo turned things around we'd have scored another goal." Elfsborg's successful title challenge was built on their exceptionally strong home form as they dropped only six points at the Boras Arena all season.
Gothenburg club Haecken will play in Europe next season following their second-placed finish, with Malmo joining them in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League. Orebro and GAIS were already relegated coming into the final round.
(Writing by Philip O'Connor in Stockholm, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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