Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League News
Live Updates
Key Events
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
Current Table
These early results have significant impact on the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to the 17th spot and returned to the safety of knockout positions.
| Pos | Side | P | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 victory and became tied on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
The Swiss side created a lifeline through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to find an equaliser!
Celtic Secure Victory
A famous and valuable win for the Celtic. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the away end, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
The Reds: Victor, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, The defender, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, Busanello.
Official: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: The Dutch referee (Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final from 1979 that links these clubs, with the groundbreaking transfer Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a largely forgettable match to clinch eternal glory for the Forest supporters.
"Forest's famous bosses, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," commented the writer. Theirs has been an extraordinary accomplishment that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European stage in a short period."
Worth mentioning to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under British coach Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that peak, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The popular prediction is on the home team tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. The Scottish side have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are at the foot of the competition table at the half-way stage of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a qualification place.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the concluded fixtures, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
