Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Final whistle: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- GOAL!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
League Position
The opening scores have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and regained position in the secure qualification spots.
| Position | Team | Matches | GD | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the three points and became tied on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the competition table. The English side struggled of that during the closing minutes.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but were left with additional time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Scottish team. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there caused dramatic events in the away end, with visiting fans clashing with police. Physical altercations occurred and objects thrown at both the officers and onto the pitch, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, Stryger Larsen, The center-back, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: Osmers (German)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, The defender, Fernandez, Djiga, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Moutinho, The midfielder, Martinez, The forward, Ricardo Horta.
Official: Lindhout (Holland)
Preamble
The European clash and historical connections. The these sides have a unique relationship, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that links these clubs, with the record-breaking signing the English forward netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"The legendary management duo, unassuming and low-key amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the celebrations," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an remarkable feat that it is hard to see being repeated – from Second Division to European football in just three years."
It's also interesting to reflect upon Malmö, who became the initial and final Swedish club to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since early November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The general expectation is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the group stage with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a late surge for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the concluded fixtures, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
