Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and More – Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Game over: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Lineups announced: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Preamble
Current Table
The initial outcomes greatly affect the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and returned to the protected playoff places.
| Rank | Team | P | Goal 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 win and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the competition table. The Birmingham club struggled of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but had just four more minutes to get the tying goal!
Celtic Secure Victory
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, at the same time, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the officers and toward the field, with Malen himself being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: John Victor, The defender, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: The German referee (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, The defender, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, The full-back, The midfielder, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Ricardo Horta.
Referee: Lindhout (Netherlands)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a special connection, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that connects these teams, with the record-breaking signing Trevor Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the mafficking," commented the writer. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to European stage in just three years."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under manager Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that summit, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. Rangers have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the midpoint 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 qualification place.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
