Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Braga vs Rangers, and More – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Final whistle: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The opening scores strongly influence the competition standings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th place and regained position in the protected knockout positions.
| Position | Club | Played | 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the victory and moved level on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. The English side had difficulty of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to get the tying goal!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, at the same time, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and at the playing surface, with the player being caught on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: Victor, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Referee: Osmers (German)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (Holland)
Match Background
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and historical connections. The these sides have a historical link, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final decades past that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer Francis heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to secure historic victory for the Forest supporters.
"Forest's famous bosses, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," commented the writer. This represented an extraordinary accomplishment that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European football in just three years."
One should note to reflect upon Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to reach the final under manager Houghton.
This match is a distant from that summit, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the home team tonight.
Additional games on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side 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 league phase with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a late surge for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the current standings from the concluded fixtures, including Villa vs Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
