Forest vs Malmö, Braga vs Rangers, and More – Europa League News
Match Coverage
Key Events
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- GOAL!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Preamble
Current Table
The opening scores greatly affect the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th place and are back in the protected playoff places.
| Pos | Club | Matches | 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 |
Full-time: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
Villa managed to hold on for the three points and moved level on points with table-toppers Midtjylland at the peak of the group rankings. The Birmingham club made hard work of that in the final stages.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
The Swiss side created a chance through Monteiro but had just additional time to find an equaliser!
Celtic Secure Victory
A significant and important 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
Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at their home ground.
Malen's double there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with Swiss fans engaging with police. Physical altercations occurred and items launched at both the police and toward the field, with the player being caught on the head by a drinking vessel.
Team News: Nottingham Forest v Malmö
The Reds: John Victor, Abbott, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö: Ellborg, Larsen, The center-back, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, Busanello.
Official: The German referee (German)
Lineups: Rangers vs Braga
The Glasgow side: The goalkeeper, The defender, Fernandez, Djiga, The full-back, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
The Portuguese side: Hornicek, The defender, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, Moutinho, The midfielder, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Referee: Allard Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and memories of 1979. The both teams have a unique relationship, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the premier competition final 46 years ago that entwines these two together, with the groundbreaking transfer Trevor Francis scoring the winner of a largely forgettable match to clinch eternal glory for the red half of Nottingham.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, modestly dressed amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench serenely viewing the celebrations," wrote the match reporter. Theirs has been an remarkable feat that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to continental competition in three seasons."
It's also interesting to reflect upon Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Nordic team to make the championship match under British coach Houghton.
Tonight's game is a far cry from that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are full of confidence after thrashing Liverpool at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since last month following the completion of Allsvenskan. The general expectation is on the Forest tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been beaten by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the 36-team Europa League standings at the half-way stage of the initial phase with no points whatsoever. They badly want a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a late surge for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the most recent results from the previous games, including Aston Villa v Young Boys and Rotterdam vs Glasgow.
