Jonkopings joined the Allsvenskan as second division champions and had a difficult first season in the league. Although Jimmy Thelin’s side did manage to secure their safety in the league with a few games to spare, it could have been a very different story for a side who collected the most draws in the league, so a few more goals conceded could have meant the club having to battle for survival. A stronger start to the season also helped the newly promoted club find their feet in the league, before they lost their form in the second half of the season. Jimmy Thelin operated with a very small squad earlier in the season and only began to use the depth of his squad when results started to decline. Certainly one of the goals of their winter will be to increase the depth of their team. One important area that will need to be worked on is in attack where on loan striker Pawal Cibicki will return to parent club Malmo. He was the club’s top scorer and was also their best player this season though he did have competition from a few other important squad members. Daryl Smylie had a better first half of the season, but declined near the end of the campaign while centre back pair Andre Calisir and Joakim Karlsson formed a strong partnership which helped them to get over the line in a few tight games. But after finishing just six points above the relegation zone, Jonkopings will certainly need to strengthen over the winter in order to be able to safe next season.
