Forest vs Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The opening scores greatly affect the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to the 17th spot and regained position in the secure qualification spots.
| Rank | Club | Matches | Difference | 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
The English side clung on for the victory and moved level on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the league phase standings. The English side struggled of that at the end.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from the Korean forward, the Japanese midfielder and Nygren.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at the stadium.
Malen's second goal there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with visiting fans confronting police. Physical altercations occurred and objects thrown at both the officers and onto the pitch, with the player being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Match official: Harm Osmers (Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, The defender, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, The striker.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Preamble
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and historical connections. The two clubs have a historical link, also competing in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship decades past that entwines these two together, with Britain's first £1m player the English forward netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the Forest supporters.
"Forest's famous bosses, unassuming and low-key amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," noted the journalist. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is hard to see being repeated – from Second Division to European football in a short period."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the initial and final Swedish club to reach the final under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a distant from that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool 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 Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this match tracking. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the midpoint of the initial phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Villa vs Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
