First Allsvenskan game in 25 years - Mjällby - GAIS

It was 25 years since we last saw some highest league-football at Strandvallen. Sunday the 21th of March was the day we had waited for so long.


The premiere of Allsvenskan was already done last week, at the National arena of Råsunda, where the surprised trippel champions AIK took a draw.


Now it was time to see them at home, the new team, after a long winter with no football.


How should the players behave at home? How should the winter pitch be? And how would the improvements of the stadium had taken form?


Well, the pregame preparations was like just another game of Superettan. The pitch was not in the best condition, but still maybe one of the better this early the year. The stadium had a brand new north stand and the south stand also all redone for the away supporters with a giant screen behind.


Without giving any impression of nervousness at the start of the game, the players still left us spectators with Mjällby eyes a little bit nervous. And even if GAIS had big injury problems in the troup (already) they seemed to be able to give Mjällby a match. Still we didn´t stay nevous very long.


It took Marcus Ekenberg exactly 34 minutes to be historical as the first scorer of this Allsvenskan session. Ekenberg, who himself claimed to have played better in last weeks game, didn´t leave anyone disappointed when he scored 3 goals on 3 attempts - a true hattrick in his first game with Mjällby in Allsvenskan. 3 goals that made him scoring leader of Allsvenskan after 2 rounds.

Interesting to notice is how media has blown up the game in the game, between scoring champions of Allsvenskan and Superettan 2009, Wanderson do Carmo from GAIS and Mjällbys Marcus Ekenberg. Well, that part of the game finished 3-0 - to Superettan.

Ekenberg, who was also choosen to be the man of the game, was not the only one to do a good game. After some hesitation the whole team recovered and manage the game very well. Tobias Grahn did not dominate like last week, but seems to have been sick during the week and was not, maybe because of the illness, as intense. His mate in the midfield, Patrick Osiako, did another great game dominating his position. He has really improved since last year and is still just 23 years old.

Another youngster is 21 year old Moestafa El Kabir, the newcomer from Holland. He made a good first game in Stockholm. But his second game in the yellow shirt was just splendid. Even if
El Kabir did not score himself he was an excellent partner to Ekenberg and was the player who got the penalty Ekenberg took care of.


Funny was it also that Peter Gitselov was ready to play and could enter to replace El Kabir on the top with 20 minutes left of the game. Unfortunatelly for him the game died and the Mjällby players did not much more than to finish the game.


Next game is away towards Örebro SK, monday the 29th.


For a lot of great pictures: http://askadaren.blogspot.com/

Summary:

Mjällby AIF - GAIS 3 - 0

Goals: 1-0 Marcus Ekenberg (34), 2-0 Ekenberg (52), 3-0 Ekenberg (71), penalty
Shots: 9 - 13
Shots on goal: 4 -4
Corners: 6 -3
Freekicks: 12 - 15
Ball posession: 58 - 42
Offside: 7 - 3
Yellow cards: 2 - 3
Red cards: 0 - 1

Spectators: 4049