Forest vs Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and More – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Key Events
- Final whistle: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Team news: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Introduction
League Position
The initial outcomes strongly influence the competition standings. Celtic climbed to 17th position and are back in the secure knockout positions.
| Rank | Side | P | GD | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Midtjylland | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| 2 | Aston Villa | 5 | 5 | 12 |
| 3 | Freiburg | 5 | 5 | 11 |
| 4 | Ferencvaros | 5 | 4 | 11 |
| 5 | FC Porto | 5 | 3 | 10 |
| 17 | Celtic | 5 | -1 | 7 |
| 25 | Nottm Forest | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 35 | Rangers | 4 | -7 | 0 |
| 33 | Malmo FF | 4 | -5 | 1 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
The English side clung on for the win and moved level on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. Villa had difficulty of that during the closing minutes.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys earned a chance through Monteiro but had just four more minutes to score the leveler!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
Villa, concurrently, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
Malen's double there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with visiting fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and objects thrown at both the officers and onto the pitch, with Malen himself being caught on the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: The goalkeeper, The defender, Jansson, The defender, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Match official: Osmers (Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, The defender, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
The European clash and past encounters. The both teams have a special connection, also facing each other in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the continental championship decades past that connects these teams, with the groundbreaking transfer Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to clinch eternal glory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from the lower league to continental competition in a short period."
Worth mentioning to pause a little on Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Scandinavian side to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The popular prediction is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. The Glasgow club have already been defeated by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the middle of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a recovery for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
