Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Introduction
League Position
The opening scores greatly affect the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th position and returned to the secure playoff places.
| Rank | Team | Matches | Goal 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 summit of the group rankings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that during the closing minutes.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but had just additional time to get the tying goal!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A memorable and crucial win for the Scottish team. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
The Birmingham side, at the same time, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at the stadium.
Malen's double there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with visiting fans clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with Malen himself being hit on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, The center-back, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: The German referee (German)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Match official: Allard Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Match Background
The European clash and historical connections. The two clubs have a special connection, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, unassuming and low-key amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. This represented an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European stage in a short period."
It's also interesting to reflect upon Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that peak, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since early November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this live coverage. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a European rival this season. Rangers are at the foot of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the league phase with precisely zero points. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any hope of making a late surge for a playoff spot.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
