Nottingham Forest v Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Key Events
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Full-time: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Starting XI: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Lineups revealed: Rangers and Braga lineups
- Introduction
Current Table
These early results strongly influence the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th position and returned to the safety of knockout positions.
| Rank | Team | P | Goal 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 three points and became tied on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the summit of the group rankings. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but were left with additional time to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A famous and valuable win for the Celtic. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and Benjamin Nygren.
Latest Action
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's second goal there caused dramatic events in the away end, with visiting fans engaging with police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the officers and toward the field, with the player being hit on the head by a plastic cup.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
The Reds: Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: Osmers (Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Light Blues: The goalkeeper, The defender, Fernandez, The defender, The full-back, Barron, Diomande, Raskin, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
Forest vs Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a historical link, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the European Cup final from 1979 that connects these teams, with the record-breaking signing the English forward scoring the winner of a largely forgettable match to secure historic victory for the Forest supporters.
"The legendary management duo, modestly dressed amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Their achievement was an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to European stage in a short period."
Worth mentioning to consider Malmö, who became the initial and final Scandinavian side to make the championship match under manager Houghton.
Tonight's game is a distant from that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. 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 popular prediction is on the Forest tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been lost to a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the half-way stage of the group stage with precisely zero points. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a playoff spot.
Coverage will persist with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the earlier matches, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
