Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Important Updates
- Match ended: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Team news: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
League Position
The opening scores strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th place and are back in the protected knockout positions.
| Rank | Side | Played | GD | 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Aston Villa secured for the three points and went equal on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the top of the competition table. The English side had difficulty of that during the closing minutes.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
Young Boys earned a chance through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and Nygren.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, meanwhile, 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 Young Boys supporters clashing with police. Punches were thrown and objects thrown at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (Germany)
Starting Players
Rangers: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, The striker.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (Netherlands)
Historical Context
Forest vs Malmö and past encounters. The two clubs have a unique relationship, also meeting in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the premier competition final decades past that connects these teams, with the groundbreaking transfer Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," commented the writer. Theirs has been an extraordinary accomplishment that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from the lower league to European stage in three seasons."
Worth mentioning to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The general expectation is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been beaten by a European rival this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the half-way stage of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
