Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers v Braga, and More – Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Match concluded: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Starting XI: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Preamble
Current Table
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th position and are back in the safety of qualification spots.
| Rank | Team | Matches | 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 win and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the competition table. The Birmingham club struggled of that in the final stages.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to score the leveler!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A famous and valuable win for the Scottish team. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, concurrently, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the away end, with visiting fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the officers and onto the pitch, with the player being struck in the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: Victor, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: Ellborg, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Referee: The German referee (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
Rangers: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, The midfielder, The attacker, Navarro, Horta.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a unique relationship, also meeting in Forest's previous European adventure in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the premier competition final from 1979 that links these clubs, with Britain's first £1m player Trevor Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, unassuming and low-key amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an extraordinary accomplishment that it is unlikely to be replicated – from the lower league to European stage in three seasons."
One should note to reflect upon Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Scandinavian side to reach the final under English manager Bob Houghton.
Tonight's game is a very different to that summit, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The popular prediction is on the English side tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this live coverage. The Glasgow club have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are last place of the competition table at the midpoint of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a comeback for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
