Photos: Amanda Aikioniemi
Words: Tom Reed
Football in the Swedish Allsvenskan is all but over by October, just when many European leagues are cranking into gear.
However, Mjällby AIF are writing stories as deep as the bay in the small fishing village from which they have won a wondrous top-tier title. The Strandvallen side created waves with a momentous 2-0 win over IFK Göteborg on Monday.
There’s only the island of Bornholm on the Baltic Sea between Hällevik, where Mjällby play, and Poland. Yet the Swedish side created an expanse of their own with an 11-point span to second placed Hammarby that’s unlikely to be crossed with only three games to play.
Jacob Bergström epitomises Mjällby's unassuming style, a former part-time player who worked shifts at Subway. The striker put away the opener vs IFK like he was demolishing a foot-long sandwich.
Tom Petterson netted the second for the yellow and blacks as former school principal Anders Torstensson’s side gave the two-time UEFA Cup winners from Göteborg a lesson.
Now the 1400 inhabitants of Hällevik have Champions League qualifiers to look forward to as Mjällby AIF boldly head out into uncharted waters.
