Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and More – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Key Events
- Match ended: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Team news: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic have moved up to the 17th spot and are back in the safety of qualification spots.
| Pos | Team | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the victory and went equal on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. The English side struggled of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a chance through Monteiro but were left with stoppage time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, at the same time, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and objects thrown at both the authorities and at the playing surface, with the player being hit on the head by a plastic cup.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, The midfielder, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Official: Osmers (from Germany)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, Ricardo Horta.
Official: Lindhout (Netherlands)
Match Background
The European clash and memories of 1979. The both teams have a unique relationship, also meeting in Forest's previous European adventure 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 scoring the winner of a pretty miserable final to clinch eternal glory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. This represented an extraordinary accomplishment that it is unlikely to be replicated – from the lower league to European stage in three seasons."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the initial and final Nordic team to make the championship match under manager Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since early November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the competition table at the middle of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a comeback for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the current standings from the concluded fixtures, including Villa vs Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
