Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and More – Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Team news: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Lineups revealed: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Preamble
Current Table
These early results have significant impact on the competition standings. Celtic climbed to 17th position and are back in the safety of playoff places.
| Pos | Club | Played | Difference | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Aston Villa secured for the three points and moved level on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the top of the league phase standings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that during the closing minutes.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but only have additional time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A famous and valuable win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and the Swedish striker.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with visiting fans engaging with police. Scuffles broke out and objects thrown at both the authorities and toward the field, with the player being caught on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, The full-back, Yates, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö FF: The goalkeeper, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (from Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: The goalkeeper, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Match official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and historical connections. The these sides have a historical link, also facing each other in Forest's most recent continental tour in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player the English forward heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to clinch eternal glory for the Forest supporters.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is hard to see being repeated – from Second Division to continental competition in just three years."
Worth mentioning to consider Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Scandinavian side to reach the final under British coach Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are riding high after beating Liverpool 3-0 at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The smart money is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the group stage with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback for a qualification place.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
