Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Preamble
League Position
The initial outcomes strongly influence the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and returned to the secure qualification spots.
| Position | Club | Played | GD | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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
Villa managed to hold on for the win and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but had just additional time to find an equaliser!
Celtic Secure Victory
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang, Hatate and Nygren.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans engaging with police. Physical altercations occurred and objects thrown at both the authorities and toward the field, with Malen himself being caught on the head by a drinking vessel.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, Yates, Sangare, The midfielder, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, The center-back, The defender, The full-back, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Official: Osmers (from Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, The defender, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, The striker.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, The midfielder, Martinez, The forward, The striker.
Referee: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Historical Context
The European clash and memories of 1979. The both teams have a historical link, also meeting in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with Britain's first £1m player the English forward heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to claim legendary status for the Forest supporters.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an remarkable feat that it is hard to see being repeated – from second tier to European football in just three years."
One should note to pause a little on Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a distant from that peak, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after beating Liverpool 3-0 at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The smart money is on the home team tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this match tracking. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a European rival this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the group stage with precisely zero points. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a playoff spot.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the current standings from the concluded fixtures, including Villa vs Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
