Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Key Events
- Final whistle: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Latest Standings
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th position and returned to the secure knockout positions.
| Pos | Side | P | 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
Villa managed to hold on for the three points and became tied on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. The Birmingham club made hard work of that at the end.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
The Birmingham side, meanwhile, maintained 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 away end, with visiting fans clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and objects thrown at both the police and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, The attacker, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, Gassama, The forward, The striker.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Netherlands)
Match Background
Forest vs Malmö and past encounters. The these sides have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the European Cup final decades past that links these clubs, with Britain's first £1m player Trevor Francis scoring the winner of a largely forgettable match to secure historic victory for the Forest supporters.
"The legendary management duo, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. This represented an outstanding achievement that it is hard to see being repeated – from the lower league to continental competition in three seasons."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to reach the final under manager Houghton.
This match is a distant from that peak, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are absolutely buzzing after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been defeated by a European rival this season. Rangers are at the foot of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the initial phase with precisely zero points. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback for a playoff spot.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
