Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Braga vs Rangers, and More – Europa League News
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Young Boys 1-2 Aston Villa
- Score!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Team news: Forest and Malmö lineups
- Lineups revealed: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Introduction
League Position
These early results strongly influence the competition standings. Celtic climbed to the 17th spot and returned to the safety of playoff places.
| Pos | Side | Matches | 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
Aston Villa secured for the victory and went equal on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the peak of the league phase standings. The Birmingham club had difficulty of that at the end.
Late Goal: Monteiro Scores
Young Boys gave themselves a hope through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to score the leveler!
Full-time: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Game Developments
The Birmingham side, concurrently, maintained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with around five minutes left at Villa Park.
Malen's double there caused dramatic events in the away end, with visiting fans clashing with police. Scuffles broke out and items launched at both the officers and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: John Victor, The defender, Milenkovic, The defender, Morato, Yates, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, The defender, The center-back, Duric, The full-back, The midfielder, Johnsen, Skogmar, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Official: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Team News: Rangers v Braga
The Light Blues: Butland, Tavernier, The center-back, Djiga, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, Lagerbielke, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, Joao Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, The striker.
Referee: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
The European clash and past encounters. The these sides have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's previous European adventure in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the continental championship from 1979 that links these clubs, with the record-breaking signing the English forward scoring the winner of a pretty miserable final to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the excitement and joy, stood for a moment on a bench quietly watching the revelry," commented the writer. Theirs has been an remarkable feat that it is hard to see being repeated – from Second Division to European stage in just three years."
Worth mentioning to reflect upon Malmö, who became the initial and final Nordic team to reach the final under English manager Bob Houghton.
The current fixture is a far cry from that peak, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the conclusion of their domestic campaign. The smart money is on the home team tonight.
Additional games on offer in this match tracking. The Glasgow club have already been beaten by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the 36-team Europa League standings at the midpoint of the initial phase with precisely zero points. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any opportunity for a recovery for a playoff spot.
Updates will continue with all the evening matches and provide the latest scores from the previous games, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
