Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and regained position in the safety of playoff places.
| Pos | Club | Played | Difference | 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
The English side clung on for the win and moved level on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. The English side made hard work of that during the closing minutes.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
The Swiss side created a chance through Monteiro but only have additional time to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A famous and valuable win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with Young Boys supporters clashing with police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the officers and toward the field, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a throwable object.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, The full-back, Yates, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: Ellborg, The defender, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, The full-back, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: The goalkeeper, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, The midfielder, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and memories of 1979. The both teams have a special connection, also competing in Forest's most recent continental tour in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship from 1979 that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to claim legendary status for the Forest supporters.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an outstanding achievement that it is unlikely to be replicated – from the lower league to European stage in a short period."
It's also interesting to reflect upon Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are absolutely buzzing after beating Liverpool 3-0 at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The smart money is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. Rangers have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the initial phase with precisely zero points. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a recovery for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
