Silkeborg will be looking to compete for a place in Europe this season as they commence their Danish Superliga campaign against Brondby at JYSK Park on Sunday evening.
The hosts struggled during their second campaign back at this level, while Brondby finished in one of their lowest positions in recent times last term.
Match preview
Following their promotion from the Danish second tier in 2021, Silkeborg enjoyed a brilliant first campaign back in the Superliga in 2021-22, finishing third and qualifying for the Europa Conference League.
SIF managed to reach the group stage of UEFA's third-tier competition, missing out on progression to the knockout stages behind Anderlecht and eventual winners West Ham United.
Matters in the Superliga soon hit stumbling blocks, and Kent Nielsen's men missed out on the top six by just a single point, leaving them to fight for seventh in the relegation group.
The post-spilt form of Midtjylland and Odense saw Silkeborg left behind in ninth, and in truth they were never in danger of being dragged into a relegation battle with the likes of Lyngby and AC Horsens.
Since the formation of the Superliga in 1991, Brondby have only failed to finish inside the top four on five occasions, and unfortunately for their loyal supporters, 2022-23 was one of those.
A fifth-placed standing after 32 matches had to be earned during the second half of the campaign, with The Boys from Vestegnen going into the winter break in 10th - a position which lost Niels Frederiksen his job.
Jesper Sorensen took the reins in January and guided Brondby to a top-half finish, although they were unable to mount a serious push for the European spots in the final 10 matches of the season.
The visitors will miss the presence of Tunisian Anis Ben Slimane in their midfield this season, after the 22-year-old sealed a move to Premier League newcomers Sheffield United earlier this month.
Team News
Silkeborg have a few injury concerns ahead of their season opener, one of which being centre-back Joel Felix, who has not featured for the club since March 19.
Iceland international Stefan Thordarson is also a doubt for Sunday's clash having not played since May - the 24-year-old was a regular figure for SIF in the first 22 matches of the 2022-23 term.
Brondby have a suspension from last term carrying over to the start of 2023-24, with midfielder Kevin Mensah serving a two-game ban for picking up a red card in the draw against Aarhus on June 4.
Simon Hedlund, Yousef Salech and Mathias Greve all bagged braces in the 8-2 thrashing of B 93 in a pre-season friendly on Monday, and the trio should be rewarded with starts this weekend's Superliga opener.
Silkeborg possible starting lineup:
Larsen; Sonne, Salquist, Busch, Engel; Mattson, Brink, Klynge; Lind, Kusk, Adamsen
Brondby possible starting lineup:
Mikkelsen; Ibsen, Lauritsen, Tshiembe; Greve, Evjen, Radosevic, Vallys, Riveros; Omoijuanfo, Kvistgaarden
We say: Silkeborg 1-1 Brondby
Silkeborg will be looking to kick off their campaign with a win in front of their home faithful, although the visit of Brondby will be a tough test.
Sorensen's men cannot afford to finish outside the European places in successive campaigns, and we expect them to begin their campaign with a respectable point on Sunday.
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