Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League Updates
Live Updates
Major Moments
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
Current Table
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th place and returned to the secure knockout positions.
| Pos | Club | P | 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
Aston Villa secured for the victory and moved level on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the competition table. The Birmingham club struggled of that in the final stages.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
The Swiss side created a hope through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A famous and valuable win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang, Reo Hatate and Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with Young Boys supporters clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and at the playing surface, with Malen himself being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: The goalkeeper, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, The defender, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Official: The German referee (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Holland)
Historical Context
The European clash and past encounters. The these sides have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that links these clubs, with Britain's first £1m player Francis heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to clinch eternal glory for the the English club.
"The legendary management duo, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the mafficking," commented the writer. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is hard to see being repeated – from the lower league to European stage in just three years."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Nordic team to reach the final under manager Houghton.
Tonight's game 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 defeating Liverpool convincingly at the famous ground 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 English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are last place of the competition table at the midpoint of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback 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 the Dutch-Scottish clash.
