Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers v Braga, and More – Europa League News
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Game over: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Preamble
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes strongly influence the league rankings. Celtic climbed to the 17th spot and returned to the secure knockout positions.
| Rank | Team | Matches | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the three points and became tied on points with leaders Midtjylland at the summit of the competition table. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but were left with stoppage time to score the leveler!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Latest Action
The Birmingham side, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at the stadium.
The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the opposition stands, with Swiss fans confronting police. Physical altercations occurred and objects thrown at both the officers and onto the pitch, with the player being hit on the head by a plastic cup.
Starting XI Revealed
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, Skogmar, 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.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, The midfielder, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Allard Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
The European clash and past encounters. The these sides have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that links these clubs, with the record-breaking signing Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," commented the writer. This represented an remarkable feat that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from the lower league to continental competition in three seasons."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to reach the final under British coach Houghton.
The current fixture is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are full of confidence after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the home team tonight.
Additional games on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been defeated by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a late surge for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the current standings from the previous games, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
