Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and Additional – Europa League News
Live Updates
Important Updates
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Team news: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Preamble
Current Table
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th place and returned to the protected qualification spots.
| Rank | Side | Matches | Difference | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Aston Villa secured for the victory and became tied on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but only have four more minutes to get the tying goal!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A significant and important win for the Celtic. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and the Swedish striker.
Match Updates
Villa, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with Young Boys supporters engaging with police. Punches were thrown and items launched at both the police and toward the field, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, The winger, The striker.
The Swedish side: Ellborg, Larsen, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, The midfielder, Skogmar, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (Germany)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, The full-back, Barron, The midfielder, Raskin, Gassama, The forward, The striker.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, The full-back, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, The midfielder, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Netherlands)
Match Background
The European clash and past encounters. The these sides have a historical link, also meeting in Forest's most recent continental tour in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer Trevor Francis heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to claim legendary status 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 quietly watching the celebrations," noted the journalist. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to continental competition in just three years."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Swedish club to reach the final under British coach Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are riding high after beating Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since early November following the end of the Swedish league season. The popular prediction is on the English side tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the group stage with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a comeback for a knockout position.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the current standings from the concluded fixtures, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.