Malmö retain Swedish title in style
Sunday, October 5, 2014
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"It feels like we've overcome a hurdle," said coach Åge Hareide after his Malmö FF side triumphed 3-2 at AIK Solna to become the first club to retain the Swedish crown since 2003.
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Malmö FF have retained the Swedish title following a 3-2 success at AIK Solna, the UEFA Champions League hopefuls ending the suspense with three games left to play.
Heading into the weekend, Malmö held a nine-point lead over second-placed IFK Göteborg, with IF Elfsborg a further point back. Both those sides lost their Sunday fixtures, which meant that Malmö could wrap up the title with a single point against AIK. Instead, they took all three, Isaac Thelin and Magnus Eriksson notching either side of the break and Markus Rosenberg hitting a late winner after the hosts had levelled.
The win lifted Malmö 12 points clear at the top with three matches remaining, and ensured they became the first club to secure back-to-back titles in Sweden since Djurgårdens IF in 2003 – just as they also became the first Swedish outfit to reach the UEFA Champions League group stage since 2000 this term.
"It's always special to win something, and this has been a long season since we started in January," said coach Åge Hareide, whose charges kicked off with four consecutive wins en route to their 18th domestic crown. "We made it through the Champions League qualifiers and now we've secured the league title. It feels like we've overcome a hurdle."
