Preview: Aalesund vs Tromso IL - prediction, team news, lineups

Tromso IL risk being left behind in the race for the Eliteserien title if they fail to defeat hosts Aalesund on Sunday at Color Line Stadion.

Aalesund are 13th with just 13 points, and they trail their third-placed visitors by a significant margin, with Tromso sitting in third with 31 points having beaten Hamarkameratene 4-1 on July 18.

Match preview

The hosts are fourth last and are only one point above KFUM Oslo, who occupy the division's relegation playoff spot, and they are also just one point above 15th-placed Kristiansund.

Aalesund deserve credit for holding second-placed Viking to a 1-1 stalemate on July 26, and they managed to regularly threaten despite only producing 25 touches in the penalty area, exactly half the total their opponents produced.

Tango are looking for their first win in six games having drawn four and lost one of their past five outings, with the club conceding 12 goals in that time.

Head coach Kjetil Rekdal will be pleased that his team netted seven times in that five-game stretch, and his players have scored at least two goals in four of their last seven fixtures.

Aalesund's performances at home cannot be described as strong considering they have only triumphed in one of their six most recent clashes at Color Line Stadion, but they did avoid defeat across that period.

Tromso were eliminated from the Europa League qualifiers on Thursday, losing 3-1 in the second leg against Hradec Kralove, suffering a 4-1 loss on aggregate.

While a defeat on the weekend would represent a third loss in a row for the club, they are looking to win a third consecutive Eliteserien match, which would also extend their unbeaten domestic streak to five games.

Boss Jorgen Vik's side are currently four points from first-placed Bodo/Glimt, though Viking have 34 points as well as a game in hand.

Gutan found the back of the net eight times in their two most recent league outings, as many as they had in their prior eight league clashes.

Tromso settled for a point after drawing 1-1 with Aalesund in the reverse fixture in May, and the two clubs share an identical record against each other since 2022 (one win, three draws, one loss).

The visitors have struggled when travelling, with Vik's team having achieved victory in one of their last five matches on the road while losing twice.

Aalesund Norwegian Eliteserien form:

Tromso IL Norwegian Eliteserien form:

Tromso IL form (all competitions):

Team News

Aalesund used central defenders Simen Haram, Emil Engqvist and Olafur Gudmundsson to great effect against Viking, and they are likely to deploy the trio once again.

However, with midfielder Mathias Christensen now suspended due to the accumulation of too many yellow cards, expect to see Henrik Melland come into the lineup.

As for Tromso, a likely trio to play in midfield are David Edvardsson, Ruben Yttergard Jenssen and Jens Hjerto-Dahl.

The visitors named Vetle Skjaervik, Tobias Kvalvagnes Guddal and Isak Vadebu in a three-man defence against Hamarkameratene, and perhaps they will be trusted together once more.

Heine Asen Larsen and Troy Nyhammer have scored six and three league goals respectively, and they could be tasked with leading the line up front.

Aalesund possible starting lineup:

Podlech; Haram, Engqvist, Gudmundsson; Andresen, Melland, Hagen, Hammer, Charles; Lonebu, Osenbroch

Tromso IL possible starting lineup:

Haugaard; Skjaervik, Guddal, Vadebu; Warneryd, Edvardsson, Jenssen, Hjerto-Dahl, Innvaer; Nyhammer, Larsen

We say: Aalesund 2-2 Tromso IL

Aalesund are likely to prove to be challenging opponents given they have often managed to avoid defeat at home.

Tromso could take time to settle into the weekend's game due to their tiring European exploits on Thursday, and it would not be surprising if they only claimed one point.

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