Forest vs Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and More – UEFA Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Key Events
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Game over: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Starting XI: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Preamble
Latest Standings
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th place and returned to the secure playoff places.
| Pos | Side | Matches | 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
Aston Villa secured for the victory and became tied on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the summit of the competition table. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but had just additional time to score the leveler!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A famous and valuable win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at the stadium.
Malen's double there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the police and toward the field, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
The Reds: John Victor, The defender, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Match official: The German referee (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, The striker.
The Arsenalistas: The goalkeeper, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, The forward, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (Holland)
Historical Context
The European clash and past encounters. The both teams have a special connection, also meeting in Forest's last European campaign in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final from 1979 that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing Francis scoring the winner of a rather dull championship game to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," commented the writer. Their achievement was an extraordinary accomplishment that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to continental competition in a short period."
One should note to consider Malmö, who became the initial and final Nordic team to make the championship match under British coach Houghton.
This match is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been lost to a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any hope of making a comeback for a knockout position.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the latest scores from the earlier matches, including the Birmingham match and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
