Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League News
Live Feed
Major Moments
- Match ended: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Game over: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to the 17th spot and regained position in the safety of qualification spots.
| Position | Side | P | Difference | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
The English side clung on for the victory and became tied on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the top of the competition table. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but only have additional time to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Scottish team. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang, Hatate and Nygren.
Game Developments
Villa, at the same time, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the visitors' section, with visiting fans clashing with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the officers and onto the pitch, with Malen himself being caught on the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, The center-back, The defender, Morato, The midfielder, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (Germany)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, The defender, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: The goalkeeper, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, Horta.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Netherlands)
Historical Context
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a special connection, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing the English forward scoring the winner of a rather dull championship game to claim legendary status for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, unassuming and low-key amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from Second Division to European stage in just three years."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the initial and final Scandinavian side to reach the final under manager Houghton.
Tonight's game is a distant from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are full of confidence after beating Liverpool 3-0 at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this match tracking. The Glasgow club have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the midpoint of the group stage with precisely zero points. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a comeback for a qualification place.
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.