Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers v Braga, and Additional – Europa League Updates
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Starting XI: Nottingham Forest v Malmö teams!
- Team news: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
League Position
These early results have significant impact on the Europa League table. Celtic climbed to 17th position and are back in the secure playoff places.
| Rank | Club | Matches | Goal Difference | 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 |
Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Villa managed to hold on for the win and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the top of the league phase standings. Villa made hard work of that during the closing minutes.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
The Swiss side created a chance through Monteiro but only have stoppage time to get the tying goal!
Celtic Secure Victory
A famous and valuable win for the Scottish team. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
Aston Villa, meanwhile, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
Malen's double there triggered intense reactions in the opposition stands, with Young Boys supporters confronting police. Punches were thrown and objects thrown at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with the player being hit on the head by a throwable object.
Starting XI Revealed
The Reds: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, The midfielder, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Official: Osmers (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Light Blues: The goalkeeper, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, The full-back, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, The striker.
The Portuguese side: The goalkeeper, The defender, Lagerbielke, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Referee: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
The European clash and historical connections. The two clubs have a historical link, also competing in Forest's most recent continental tour in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that connects these teams, with the record-breaking signing the English forward netting the decisive goal of a pretty miserable final to claim legendary status for the red half of Nottingham.
"The legendary management duo, modestly dressed amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the mafficking," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an extraordinary accomplishment that it is hard to see being repeated – from Second Division to continental competition in three seasons."
One should note to consider Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Nordic team to reach the final under manager Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the group stage with precisely zero points. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a late surge for a qualification place.
We'll keep you up to date with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the latest scores from the earlier matches, including the Birmingham match and Feyenoord v Celtic.
