Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Final whistle: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Starting XI: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Team news: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Preamble
Current Table
The initial outcomes greatly affect the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and are back in the secure qualification spots.
| Rank | Side | P | Difference | 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Aston Villa secured for the victory and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys earned a lifeline through Monteiro but were left with stoppage time to score the leveler!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A significant and important win for the Scottish team. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Latest Action
Villa, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
The Dutch forward's brace there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans confronting police. Punches were thrown and objects thrown at both the officers and at the playing surface, with Malen himself being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: The goalkeeper, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, The full-back, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, The full-back, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, The striker.
Braga: The goalkeeper, The defender, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, Horta.
Official: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Match Background
Forest vs Malmö and memories of 1979. The both teams have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's most recent continental tour in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that links these clubs, with the groundbreaking transfer Francis netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"The legendary management duo, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European football in three seasons."
Worth mentioning to reflect upon Malmö, who became the initial and final Swedish club to reach the final under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a very different to that summit, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been defeated by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the middle of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a knockout position.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the current standings from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
