Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News
Live Updates
Major Moments
- Match ended: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Lineups revealed: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Introduction
League Position
The initial outcomes strongly influence the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th position and are back in the safety of knockout positions.
| Position | Team | Matches | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
Villa managed to hold on for the win and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. The English side struggled of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
The Swiss side created a chance through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and toward the field, with the player being struck in the head by a plastic cup.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: The goalkeeper, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Match official: The German referee (German)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and past encounters. The both teams have a special connection, also meeting in Forest's most recent continental tour in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that connects these teams, with the record-breaking signing the English forward heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to clinch eternal glory for the Forest supporters.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the revelry," commented the writer. Theirs has been an remarkable feat that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European football in three seasons."
One should note to pause a little on Malmö, who became the initial and final Nordic team to reach the final under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The popular prediction is on the home team tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
