Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Major Moments
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Team news: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Preamble
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the competition standings. The Glasgow side rose to the 17th spot and are back in the secure playoff places.
| Position | Side | P | Goal 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 three points and moved level on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. The Birmingham club made hard work of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but only have additional time to score the leveler!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A famous and valuable win for the Scottish team. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the away end, with Young Boys supporters clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and items launched at both the police and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
The Reds: Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, The attacker, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (from Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Official: Allard Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and past encounters. 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 continental championship from 1979 that links these clubs, with the record-breaking signing the English forward heading the only goal of a rather dull championship game to claim legendary status 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 mafficking," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an extraordinary accomplishment that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European football in three seasons."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the initial and final Scandinavian side to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that summit, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are absolutely buzzing after beating Liverpool 3-0 at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the English side tonight.
Additional games on offer in this clockwatch. Rangers have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the half-way stage of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a playoff spot.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the current standings from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
