Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers vs Braga, and More – Europa League Updates
Live Updates
Important Updates
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Game over: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Starting XI: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Starting players: Starting XI for Rangers vs Braga
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and are back in the protected qualification spots.
| Position | Side | P | GD | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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
The English side clung on for the win and went equal on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the top of the competition table. Villa made hard work of that in the final stages.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
Young Boys earned a lifeline through Monteiro but had just four more minutes to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A memorable and crucial win for the Celtic. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Match Updates
The Birmingham side, meanwhile, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with roughly 300 seconds left at their home ground.
The Dutch forward's brace there caused dramatic events in the away end, with Swiss fans confronting police. Scuffles broke out and objects thrown at both the police and at the playing surface, with the player being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, Abbott, The center-back, The defender, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, The defender, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, The forward, The striker.
Match official: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Light Blues: Butland, The defender, The center-back, Djiga, The full-back, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, The forward, Chermiti.
The Arsenalistas: The goalkeeper, Gomez, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, Horta.
Referee: The Dutch referee (Holland)
Historical Context
Forest vs Malmö and past encounters. The two clubs have a special connection, also meeting in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the continental championship decades past that links these clubs, with the record-breaking signing Francis heading the only goal of a largely forgettable match to claim legendary status for the Forest supporters.
"Forest's famous bosses, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," noted the journalist. Their achievement was an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from Second Division to European football in three seasons."
One should note to consider Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Scandinavian side to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a far cry from that summit, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Anfield on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since 9 November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The smart money is on the English side tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this live coverage. Rangers have already been beaten by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the competition table at the half-way stage of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any hope of making a recovery for a qualification place.
We'll keep you up to date with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the current standings from the earlier matches, including the Birmingham match and Feyenoord v Celtic.
