Piteå won the Swedish Championship gold in 2018, but the form curve has since pointed steeply downwards.

Last year was a lead-heavy season for the Norrbotten team, which only scraped together four wins and finished second last.

Thanks to the league being extended to this year, the team escaped relegation and this year the situation looks completely different six rounds into the season.

Already now Piteå has won four matches and the team is second in the table just beaten by Rosengård.

"Glad that there will be an effect"

- We have been working on things now for 1.5 years soon and the players have put in a great job.

They are happy that they are now getting paid for it, that there will be some effect.

It is very much the same team and eleven who have done this.

We really believe in our players who are here, says the team's longtime coach Stellan Carlsson.

Why is it going better this year?

- We have been healthy and trained well.

I think we are physically better prepared compared to last year.

Since then, we have had a year to work on how we want to play both defense and attacking games.

We also got to know each other more on and off the pitch.

One has given the other and we have taken a little step further.

Long way to go

But with only six of 26 games played, he is humble in the face of the challenges ahead.

- To draw far too great conclusions from individual matches becomes very crazy.

The big key is to be able to perform at as high a level as possible over time.

It's so incredibly smooth.

It's small things that decide.

Piteå meets Eskilstuna at home on Sunday.

KLIPP: Piteås was sniffed at goals in the last round (1/5):

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Piteå was sniffed at goal against Brommapojkarna Photo: Viaplay