Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Feed
Important Updates
- Full-time: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Team news: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Preamble
Current Table
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and are back in the safety of playoff places.
| Pos | Club | Matches | 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
The English side clung on for the three points and moved level on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the league phase standings. Villa struggled of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to find an equaliser!
Celtic Secure Victory
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, meanwhile, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with visiting fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the police and onto the pitch, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a plastic cup.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: The goalkeeper, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, The defender, Rosler, The midfielder, The midfielder, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: Harm Osmers (Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: Butland, The defender, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, Ricardo Horta.
Official: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Historical Context
The European clash and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a unique relationship, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player the English forward scoring the winner of a rather dull championship game to claim legendary status for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," commented the writer. This represented an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to European stage in a short period."
Worth mentioning to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to make the championship match under manager Houghton.
This match is a very different to that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The popular prediction is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the group stage with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a knockout position.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
