Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – Europa League News
Match Coverage
Important Updates
- Final whistle: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Starting XI: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Opening notes
League Position
The opening scores strongly influence the league rankings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th place and returned to the safety of knockout positions.
| Position | Club | P | Goal Difference | 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
Villa managed to hold on for the three points and became tied on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to get the tying goal!
Celtic Secure Victory
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at the stadium.
Malen's second goal there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with visiting fans engaging with police. Punches were thrown and objects thrown at both the officers and at the playing surface, with Malen himself being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: John Victor, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, Yates, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Larsen, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, Bolin, The forward, The striker.
Official: Harm Osmers (Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Match official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
The European clash and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a historical link, also facing each other in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the continental championship decades past that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer the English forward scoring the winner of a largely forgettable match to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Forest's famous bosses, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an outstanding achievement that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to European football in a short period."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to reach the final under manager Houghton.
Tonight's game is a distant from that summit, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are absolutely buzzing after thrashing Liverpool at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the league phase with exactly zero. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a late surge for a knockout position.
We'll keep you up to date with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including Villa vs Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.