Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Braga vs Rangers, and More – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Final whistle: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Late goal from Monteiro makes it 2-1
- Full-time: Feyenoord defeated 1-3 by Celtic
- Team news: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
League Position
The opening scores greatly affect the Europa League table. Celtic have moved up to 17th place and regained position in the safety of qualification spots.
| Rank | Team | Matches | GD | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Aston Villa secured for the victory and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the top of the league phase standings. The Birmingham club struggled of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys gave themselves a lifeline through Monteiro but had just additional time to find an equaliser!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A significant and important win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, the Japanese midfielder and Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained 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 opposition stands, with visiting fans engaging with police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the officers and onto the pitch, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a throwable object.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, Sangare, The midfielder, The attacker, Hudson-Odoi, The striker.
Malmö FF: The goalkeeper, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: Osmers (German)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
Rangers: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, The midfielder, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Official: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Historical Context
The European clash and past encounters. The two clubs have a historical link, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player the English forward heading the only goal of a rather dull championship game to clinch eternal glory for the Forest supporters.
"The legendary management duo, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," commented the writer. Their achievement was an extraordinary accomplishment that it is hard to see being repeated – from second tier to continental competition in a short period."
One should note to reflect upon Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to make the championship match under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in that era. Forest are riding high after beating Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The general expectation is on the home team tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this clockwatch. Rangers have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the competition table at the middle of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a recovery for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the most recent results from the concluded fixtures, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
