Forest vs Malmö, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Important Updates
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Game over: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The opening scores greatly affect the league rankings. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and are back in the protected knockout positions.
| Position | Side | Played | GD | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
Villa managed to hold on for the three points and moved level on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. The English side struggled of that during the closing minutes.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a lifeline through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang, the Japanese midfielder and the Swedish striker.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, at the same time, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans engaging with police. Scuffles broke out and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and toward the field, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Official: Harm Osmers (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Match official: Lindhout (Holland)
Preamble
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and past encounters. The both teams have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final from 1979 that entwines these two together, with the record-breaking signing the English forward scoring the winner of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Forest's famous bosses, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an extraordinary accomplishment that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to European football in a short period."
It's also interesting to reflect upon Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Scandinavian side to advance to the ultimate game under British coach Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The popular prediction is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been lost to a Braga this season. Rangers are at the foot of the league rankings at the midpoint of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a comeback for a qualification place.
Coverage will persist with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the current standings from the earlier matches, including the Birmingham match and Feyenoord v Celtic.
