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!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The opening scores have significant impact on the league rankings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and regained position in the secure knockout positions.
| Rank | Side | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
Aston Villa secured for the win and moved level on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. Villa had difficulty of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a chance through Monteiro but were left with 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 fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Hatate and Nygren.
Latest Action
The Birmingham side, concurrently, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's second goal there sparked furious scenes in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans engaging with police. Scuffles broke out and items launched at both the authorities and toward the field, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, The attacker, The winger, The striker.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: The German referee (from Germany)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (Holland)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The both teams have a historical link, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the continental championship decades past that entwines these two together, with Britain's first £1m player Francis netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Forest's famous bosses, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. This represented an remarkable feat that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to European football in a short period."
Worth mentioning to reflect upon Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to reach the final under British coach Houghton.
This match is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the home team tonight.
Additional games on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the middle of the initial phase with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a late surge for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
