We’ve all seen those Superettan Saturdays where you roll in expecting a 1-1 slog and next thing you know, your pint is shaking because someone’s let off another Mikkel Ladefoged rocket. That’s what we’re dealing with this weekend at the Hitachi Energy Arena—a Vasteras SK side that suddenly looks like the 1999 Manchester United treble-winners (or at least the Swedish version where Jonathan Ring doubles as Ryan Giggs and Mikkel Ladefoged is basically Scandinavian Dwight Yorke), lining up against a GIF Sundsvall team that’s either due for a season-defining rally or an existential crisis. With only four left after this, it’s all riding on a razor’s edge, and for Vasteras, the champagne is chilling, but nobody’s uncorking it—not yet.

This is the moment you circle on the calendar, the episode of “Succession” right before everything blows up. Vasteras sitting at third, just two points off the summit, bristling with goal-scorers, absolutely steamrolling anyone who wanders into their crosshairs. Four straight wins—14 goals in the last five. They rolled Ostersunds FK 6-1 on the road. That’s not a football score, that’s a hockey score. Ladefoged bagged a hat trick in 6 minutes—a stat so absurd I had to check twice to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating it. Ring and Taonsa are slicing defenses with the kind of swagger that says, “We want the big time.” Every time you look, someone new is on the scoresheet; it’s like the Avengers assembling, but with more nordic running and fewer capes.

But GIF Sundsvall? Well, they’re the dangerous underdog who shows up to the party with nothing to lose. Seventh place, 38 points—a good season by most standards, but not enough to browse the promotion brochures just yet. Their recent form is what you’d call “schizophrenic” if you’re being polite, “painfully inconsistent” if you’re a radio host who’s seen a few too many mid-table flameouts. Two wins in five, three losses, and only one real offensive explosion—a 3-1 win at home to Umeå FC where Pontus Engblom rolled back the years and reminded everyone what a one-man highlight reel looks like. But for every step forward, there’s a slip—the 0-3 faceplant at Falkenbergs FF, the narrow defeat at Trelleborgs. They’re the wildcard you invite to poker night. Sometimes they clean you out, sometimes they’re out in the first hand.

So what’s the script for this one? Start with the obvious: Vasteras, at home, are the heavy favorite. They press high, they run all day, and they’ve got goal threats from everywhere—Taonsa with his clever movement, Ring ghosting in from deep, Ladefoged suddenly looking like a guy who could get a late-career move to somewhere flashier. Defensively, they’ve gone from leaky to locked down, conceding just twice in their last four. There’s a confidence now, a sense that the top flight is calling, and they’re determined to answer on the first ring.

GIF Sundsvall’s hope comes from chaos. Their best games are helter-skelter, pressing high up the field, trying to drag their opponent into a track meet. Engblom—he’s their spirit animal, a guy who can make something out of nothing and drag his teammates along for the ride. Marcelo Palomino is the X-factor; if he gets space, he can punish you from distance, as proven by his recent goals. Ture Sandberg brings that late-game energy off the bench. For them, the game plan is clear: disrupt Vasteras’ rhythm, force turnovers, make it ugly. If they can get Vasteras to play at their tempo rather than the other way around, that’s where the upset starts brewing.

But this isn’t Rocky IV. This is more like “Game of Thrones” right before the Battle of the Bastards—Sundsvall can only hang in if they survive the first twenty minutes. Vasteras at home, with their fans leaning in, smelling a promotion push—if they get the early goal, it could turn into another goalfest. If not, the nerves creep in and maybe, just maybe, Sundsvall can pull one out of the fire with some classic smash-and-grab.

Key battles? Start in midfield: Vasteras’ engine vs Sundsvall’s press. If the home side can get Ring and Larsson on the ball, dictating tempo, it’s a long day for the visitors. But if Sundsvall’s midfield can turn that into a bar fight, anything goes. At the top, Ladefoged’s directness up against Sundsvall’s backline—who have shipped 12 in their last five. On the flip side, can Sundsvall get Engblom in behind, exploiting those rare Vasteras lapses?

So what’s the prediction? Vasteras are operating like a team possessed, and form doesn’t lie this late in the season. Could Sundsvall do a “Miracle on Ice” and snatch something? Sure, but I wouldn’t bet my favorite ABBA record on it. Expect fireworks, expect goals, but unless Sundsvall finds a new script, the home side’s march toward the title looks set to roll on. This is the episode where you don’t leave for snacks—anything could happen, but the big names are ready to steal the spotlight. Here’s hoping, at least, for a finish worthy of the hype.