How did Kalmar FF survive in the Allsvenskan 2020 play-off? – tactical analysis

Allsvenskan and Superettan 2020 were finished in early December. Two relegation places were confirmed as we saw Falkenbergs FF and Helsingborgs IF were the last two teams in the table. However, just like Bundesliga and the promotion of EFL Championship to Premier League, a two-leg play-off is needed to determine the final results. After fighting very hard to secure the 14^th place, Kalmar FF were once again in the Allsvenskan play-off in two consecutive years. Their opponents were Jönköpings Södra IF, the third in the second-tier.

The two-leg battles ended with a 4-1 victory of Kalmar, marking a good departure of Nanne Bergstrand, who left the team for the second time. In both legs, Jönköpings dominated the ball, had more passes but failed to score enough to secure a draw. So, how did Röda Bröder managed to defend well? This tactical analysis dissects the defensive tactics of Bergstrand, and explaining the solutions of Jönköpings to cope with the press.

Lineups

When Jönköpings played in a 3-5-2 formation, Bergstrand favoured a 4-2-3-1 team shape on paper. This sets the foundations of the press and the positions of players defined their duties off-the-ball.

In the first game, the young Nils Fröling started as the lone striker, supported by another young player – Isak Jansson. The experienced Emin Nouri played as the right-back while Piotr Johansson partnered Viktor Elm at the central of the defence.