After 1-2 losses against Häcken and Halmstad and injuries to Jusef Erabi and Pavle Vagic, there were some question marks for Hammarby ahead of Monday’s meeting with Västerås.
Bajen made several changes to the starting eleven. Vagic and Erabi were thus injured. Montader Madjed, Deniz Gül and Fredrik Hammar were benched.
Mads Fenger, Hampus Skoglund, Tesfalde Tekie, Viktor Djukanovic and Abdelrahman Boudah entered the starting eleven.
And it was only Hammarby in the first half. At first it was very much Nahir Besara.
After twelve minutes, Besara started to push in. Then with a shot outside the penalty area that Johan Brattberg took easily.
Two minutes later, Besara shot a free kick just outside the penalty area, Brattberg saved for a corner. The corner was taken by Besara and it was about to go into the goal, but was cleared at the goal line.
After 17 minutes, Besara took a free kick from 25 meters which Brattberg again saved for a corner.
A minute later, Besara shot from 25 meters and hit the post. The ball went back to Hammarby and Oscar Johansson Schellhas hit a nice pass between the away team’s left back and center back to Hampus Skoglund who hit a cross that Abdelrahman Boudah headed into the goal. 1-0 Hammarby.
It was 1-0 after the first half.
– Not so good. We didn’t get bitten by the press and made stupid decisions. Once we won it, we gave it away right away. Then it is difficult to establish anything. It’s too bad quality right now. We lose simple possessions, Herman Magnusson told Discovery+ at halftime.
Abdelrahman Boudah till Discovery+:
– It’s nice, it was a long time ago (that he scored a goal). I saw Hampus (Skoglund) have the ball and we have practiced on those runs. Hampus also knows where we should run, so it came there. It went crazy fast. I just saw that Hampus had the ball and I thought I would do what we have been practicing.
After 59 minutes, Nahir Besara had shot in enough. Shaquille Pinas played the ball into the penalty area to Besara who almost from the penalty spot placed it down at Brattberg’s left post. 2-0 Hammarby.
But Västerås came back.
After 2-0, the away team made three changes. One who came in was big and strong striker Jabir Abdihakim Ali. Five minutes after the goal, he received a play which he absorbed and released back to another substitute, Simon Johansson. Johansson was turned right with the ball at speed and passed past Hampus Skoglund, who defended weakly, to Patric Åslund. In the penalty area, Åslund pulled away a shot, Oliver Dovin returned and Simon Gefvert put in 2-1.
The away team tried to equalize but had difficulty establishing attacks and creating dangerous chances.
Hammarby persevered and won 2-1.
– It was extremely nice. It felt like we were going for the third, but went 2-1, and again there was stress, says Nahir Besara to Discovery+ and continues:
– It feels like we were better today.
Bajen coach Kim Hellberg is also happy.
– We faced a team, which I think has been one of the big surprises in terms of play in the Allsvenskan. That was already the case when we met them in the cup here, and then it was an even match. Today I think we were very, very good and won quite fairly. We played one of our better games, and it shows that we want to move forward, he tells Discovery+.
Startelvor:
Hammarby IF: Dovin – Skoglund, Kurtulus, Fenger, Pinas – Karlsson, Tekie – Johansson, Besara, Boudah – Djukanovic.
Västerås SK: Brattberg – Magnusson, Nsabiyumva, Douglas – Gefvert, Linday, Åslund, Larsson – Ahlinvi, Diabate, Offia.
