Football Season Guide

Bottom-half finish to last season saw giants Gothenburg looking for major changes and they took the radical decision to appoint new manager in January. The new gaffer Poya Asbaghi doesn’t have any top-flight experience as a coach, he has been manager of Dalkurd and Gefle before, plus he is only 32-years-old. As expected the unsatisfying 2017 season saw some of the stars leaving in the winter. Centre-back Rogne and the most creative wide midfielder Rieks are the two major departures. Veteran striker Boman was also solid contributor up front last season, but his advanced age made his release somewhat expected. Asbaghi hasn’t made moves to sign an attacking replacement and it seems that the 36-year-old veteran Hysen will be partnered up front by one of the youngsters Omarsson and Lagemyr. The former had an impressive pre-season and strong Swedish Cup appearances in March and he seems eager to become a star this year. Probably the two most important signings so far for Gothenburg, the transfer window in Sweden remains open until 05th April and there is still time for changes, were those of goalkeeper Dahlberg and midfielder Sakor. The former was sold to Watford, but loaned back for two years, while Sakor extended his successful loan move from Juventus for another six months at least. However, all other transfers in are hardly proven names and Gothenburg seem to be short on numbers in certain areas. The two new centre-backs are not proven names, while two of the other three players for these positions only just turned 20. Similar inexperienced players at this level will be battling it for the full-back roles and this suggests that Gothenburg might be having defensive difficulties once again. Captain Sebastian Eriksson will be the heart and soul of the team and if he performs at his best Blue and Whites might be just about able to push for a top three finish. However, this could happen only if at least three-four of the younger players mature quickly and deliver solid contributions.