Scouts report: A to Z of HIF

Helsingborg IF it is then. Everything I have read from our management and forums is that we wanted them and everything I read from their management and forums is that they wanted us. Everybody’s happy then. Now we got the draw that we wanted, can we win this? Yes we can, and I believe we will.

Of course we all knew who Helsingborgs IF, known as HIF by their fans,  were before the draw thanks to Henrik Larsson forever linking our clubs. Their home games are played at Olympiastadion in front of an average crowd of about 8000. HIF are not one of the traditional Swedish powerhouses with their win in the league last season only the fifth time they have captured it.  

They were hugely successful in doing so although they were handicapped by having to sell three of their best players last summer, which is midway through the season, they still managed to win the treble. Losing starting players to other teams during their season must be something they have to deal with every year as star player Alfred Finnbogasson did not sign for them permanently and moved on to Heerenveen last week.

This season did not start as well for them. There was a win over AIK Stockholm for the Swedish Super Cup but they struggled in the league. Only 4 wins from their first 12 games put them well of the pace and lead to the resignation of manager Conny Karlsson. 

Age Hareide agreed to manage them again for a second time until the end of the season. He was the their manager the last time they won the league back in 1999, though he was not in charge the following season when they qualified for the Champions League group stages at the expense of Inter Milan.

Hareide has also won the Danish League with Brondby IF in 2001-02 and the Norwegian League with Rosenberg BK in 2003. This puts him in a very elite list of managers that have won domestic titles in three different countries. Since he took charge again things starting picking up for HIF. Until last Saturday’s defeat they were the most on form team in the league and they also navigated 2 rounds of Champions League qualifiers.

HIF’s win in the last round round against Slask Wroclaw was impressive. Not a lot of teams will go to Poland and come away with a 3-0 victory but it is their European pedigree that I get my first question mark on them. As stated earlier HIF are not one of the big teams in Swedish football. 

As stated earlier HIF are not one of the big teams in Swedish football. This is the first time they have played in the Champions League since the 2000-01 season. Since then they have only appeared in a major European competition, including this year, five times. Not only does this club not have much experience in Champions League football, they don’t have much experience in Europe period. Here are their results over the last few years.

Europa League 09/10
1st
HIF 3-1 Mika
Mika 1-1 HIF

2nd
Zestaponi 1-2 HIF
HIF 2-2 Zestaponi

3rd
HIF 2-1 Sarajevo
Sarajevo 2-1 HIF(Sara win on Pen)

Europa League 11/12
3rd
Bnei Yehuda 1-0 HIF
HIF 3-0 Bnei Yehuda

Play
Standard Liege 1-0 HIF
HIF 1-3 Standard Liege

Champs League 12/13
2nd
The New Saints 0-0 HIF
HIF 3-0 The New Saints

3rd
Slask Wroclaw 0-3 HIF
HIF 3-1 Slask Wroclaw

Everybody talks about how much pressure there is on us to win this game, but do you not think there is a lot of pressure on HIF as well? No Swedish team has been in the group stages in 12 seasons. If HIF do qualify and get the guaranteed 15 million, it would set the club up for about 5 years of no financial worries and they would be able to purchase the likes of Finnbogasson and improve their squad. 

This is a huge game for them, an opportunity to dominate Swedish football for the foreseeable future.

Looking at their playing staff they have returned six starters from the team that won the Swedish cup at the end of last season. Four of the other players that started that game are still with the club, so that to me suggests an improvement in playing staff. Par Hansson the keeper was voted player of the year last season and this earned him a place on Swedens EURO 12 team. They do not contain any regular international players. 

Who is their most dangerous player? Easy question last week, Finnbogsson, this week I could not answer. Alvaro Santos looks intelligent but has not started for weeks. Mattias Lindstrom the right winger got injured against Slask and won’t play. It is not Thomas Sorum, he got most of his goals because of Finnbogasson and HIF fans don’t rate him much and we know it won’t be Alejandro Bedoya.

I really don’t know where their creative play will come from now. Here is how HIF fans rate their top five over the last seven games.

Walid Atta                    6.78 Centre Back
Alfred Finnbogsson           6.71 Transferred
Jere Uronen                      6.60 18 year old left back
Par Hansson                     6.57 Keeper, doubtful
May Mahlangu                  6.50 Centre Mid

You can see for yourself that even though they are in good form, the fact that 2 defenders, a keeper and centre midfielder make their top 5 list shows that they still come under pressure. Atta is a solid centre back, maybe a little slow but he knows his job and is also a threat from set pieces. He performs better when Loret Sadiku partners him.

Their whole centre is fairly strong with Ardian Gashi playing the other centre mid position. With these lads playing and Hansson in nets they do not concede much.

Fullback is an interesting position for them. In Europe they play 36 year old Erik Wahlstedt at right back and 18 year old Uronen at left back. When it comes to league play Christoffer Andersson plays right back yet in Europe he plays left midfield. 

This either means Wahlstedt is the only legit right back they have, which I doubt, or they are not too confident in the defensive capabilities of the young Uronen at left back so they put another defensive minded player in front of him. I have a feeling we could exploit them down the right wing.

Here is how I think they will lineup

    Hansson

Wahlstedt                   Atta               Sadiku               Uronen
Nordmark                        Mahlagu          Gashi                 Anderson
Sorum             Bedoya/Santos

I think Hansson will start for them, too big a game and he is a very important player. Formation wise they play a regular 4-4-2 but it might be tweaked a little without Finnbogasson but nothing we have not been prepared for before. They do have a few players that are dangerous from 20-35 yards, they like to have a shot, but we can nullify that threat by playing Wanyama in front of the centre backs.

In summary this is a very winnable tie for us. There is no excuses for us to lose this over two legs. They have just lost their star player and they are under as much pressure as us. If we keep it professional and work as hard as we did against HJK Helsinki in Finland we will come home with a positive result tonight. If this tie was between HIF and HJK, I would say HIF would take it, but only just. This is as good a chance as we will ever get to qualify for the Champions League.

CLICK HERE for Hellsingborg fan gives his Celtic view

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