Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – Europa League News
Live Updates
Key Events
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Game over: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the league rankings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th place and returned to the secure knockout positions.
| Rank | Club | P | 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 went equal on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the summit of the competition table. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that in the final stages.
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 famous and valuable win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang, Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with visiting fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a plastic cup.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (Germany)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, The midfielder, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and historical connections. The these sides have a historical link, also competing in Forest's most recent continental tour in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the continental championship decades past that entwines these two together, with Britain's first £1m player Trevor Francis heading the only goal of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"The legendary management duo, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an extraordinary accomplishment that it is hard to see being repeated – from second tier to continental competition in a short period."
Worth mentioning to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after thrashing Liverpool at the famous ground on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since early November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this live coverage. The Scottish side have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the competition table at the midpoint of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the most recent results from the earlier matches, including the Birmingham match and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
