Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Key Events
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Starting XI: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
League Position
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th place and are back in the secure qualification spots.
| Rank | Club | Played | GD | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
Aston Villa secured for the victory and moved level on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the summit of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that during the closing minutes.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys gave themselves a chance through Monteiro but only have four more minutes to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A memorable and crucial win for the Scottish team. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Reo Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with visiting fans engaging with police. Physical altercations occurred and items launched at both the officers and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
Nottingham Forest: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, Larsen, The center-back, The defender, The full-back, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Referee: The German referee (Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: The goalkeeper, Gomez, The center-back, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, Horta.
Official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Preamble
Forest vs Malmö and memories of 1979. The both teams have a unique relationship, also facing each other 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 Britain's first £1m player Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to clinch eternal glory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European football in a short period."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under manager Houghton.
This match is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this match tracking. Rangers have already been defeated by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a late surge for a knockout position.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
