Forest vs Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Team news: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Latest Standings
These early results strongly influence the league rankings. Celtic climbed to the 17th spot and are back in the secure knockout positions.
| Pos | Club | P | Difference | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the win and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that during the closing minutes.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a lifeline through Monteiro but had just four more minutes to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A significant and important win for the Scottish team. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
Villa, at the same time, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with visiting fans engaging with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and toward the field, with Malen himself being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, The full-back, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: The German referee (from Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, The full-back, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
Braga: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Ricardo Horta.
Match official: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Historical Context
Forest vs Malmö and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's most recent continental tour in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with the record-breaking signing the English forward netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to claim legendary status for the the English club.
"Forest's famous bosses, unassuming and low-key amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European stage in three seasons."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the initial and final Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a very different to that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are full of confidence after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this live coverage. The Glasgow club have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the group stage with precisely zero points. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a comeback for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the current standings from the previous games, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
