Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and More – Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Starting XI: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Team news: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Preamble
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and are back in the protected qualification spots.
| Position | Side | P | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
Villa managed to hold on for the three points and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but only have four more minutes to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A significant and important win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang, Reo Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans confronting police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the police and onto the pitch, with the player being hit on the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Match official: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Light Blues: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, The striker.
The Arsenalistas: The goalkeeper, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, The forward, Horta.
Referee: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and historical connections. The two clubs have a historical link, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"The legendary management duo, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," noted the journalist. This represented an outstanding achievement that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to continental competition in just three years."
Worth mentioning to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to reach the final under manager 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 beating Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since early November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this match tracking. The Scottish side 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 league phase with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the concluded fixtures, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.