Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Key Events
- Final whistle: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Team news: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Introduction
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to the 17th spot and regained position in the secure qualification spots.
| Pos | Club | Matches | Difference | 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the win and became tied on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. Villa had difficulty of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but only have additional time to get the tying goal!
Celtic Secure Victory
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and the Swedish striker.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, at the same time, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.
The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the opposition stands, with visiting fans engaging with police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the officers and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
The Reds: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, Larsen, The center-back, Duric, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: Osmers (Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
Rangers: Butland, The defender, Fernandez, Djiga, The full-back, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: The goalkeeper, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Moutinho, The midfielder, Martinez, Navarro, Ricardo Horta.
Referee: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a special connection, also facing each other in Forest's last European campaign in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to clinch eternal glory for the Forest supporters.
"The legendary management duo, unassuming and low-key amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," commented the writer. This represented an extraordinary accomplishment that it is hard to see being repeated – from the lower league to continental competition in three seasons."
Worth mentioning to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to make the championship match under British coach Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that summit, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The popular prediction is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. The Glasgow club have already been lost to a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the league rankings at the middle of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a playoff spot.
We'll keep you up to date with all the late games and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Villa vs Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
