Forest vs Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Final whistle: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Lineups announced: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the competition standings. Celtic have moved up to 17th position and are back in the secure knockout positions.
| Pos | Club | P | GD | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
The English side clung on for the victory and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the summit of the group rankings. Villa struggled of that during the closing minutes.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but only have four more minutes to get the tying goal!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from the Korean forward, Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Game Developments
Villa, concurrently, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's double there sparked furious scenes in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the officers and toward the field, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a throwable object.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Referee: The German referee (Germany)
Starting Players
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, The midfielder, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Holland)
Historical Context
Forest vs Malmö and past encounters. The both teams have a special connection, also competing in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the European Cup final decades past that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to clinch eternal glory for the the English club.
"Forest's famous bosses, modestly dressed amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the revelry," wrote the match reporter. This represented an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European football in three seasons."
One should note to reflect upon Malmö, who became the initial and final Scandinavian side to advance to the ultimate game under British coach Houghton.
This match is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the home team tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been defeated by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are at the foot of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the concluded fixtures, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
