Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers v Braga, and More – Europa League News
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Game over: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Lineups revealed: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
These early results have significant impact on the Europa League table. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and returned to the protected qualification spots.
| Rank | Team | 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 became tied on points with leaders Midtjylland at the top of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys earned a lifeline through Monteiro but were left with stoppage time to find an equaliser!
Celtic Secure Victory
A famous and valuable win for the Celtic. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
Villa, concurrently, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.
The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the visitors' section, with visiting fans confronting police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
Forest: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: The goalkeeper, The defender, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Official: Harm Osmers (German)
Starting Players
Rangers: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, The striker.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, The forward, The striker.
Match official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Preamble
Forest vs Malmö and historical connections. The two clubs have a unique relationship, also competing in Forest's previous European adventure in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer 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 festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the mafficking," noted the journalist. Theirs has been an outstanding achievement that it is unlikely to be replicated – from second tier to European stage in three seasons."
One should note to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Scandinavian side to make the championship match under British coach Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that peak, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't kicked a competitive ball since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The popular prediction is on the home team tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this match tracking. The Scottish side have already been defeated by a European rival this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the middle of the league phase with exactly zero. They badly want a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a comeback for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the latest scores from the previous games, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
