Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Match Coverage
Major Moments
- Match ended: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Score!: Joël Monteiro scores for Young Boys at 90+1
- Match concluded: Celtic 3-1 Feyenoord
- Lineups announced: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Preamble
League Position
These early results strongly influence the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th position and are back in the protected playoff places.
| Position | Team | Played | Goal Difference | 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 |
Final Score: Aston Villa 2-1
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 English side had difficulty of that at the end.
90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back
The Swiss side created a lifeline through Monteiro but were left with four more minutes to score the leveler!
Celtic Secure Victory
A memorable and crucial win for the Glasgow side. Despite going 1-0 down, Celtic responded strongly with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, the Japanese midfielder and Nygren.
Match Updates
Aston Villa, at the same time, maintained 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 visiting fans confronting police. Punches were thrown and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and onto the pitch, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a drinking vessel.
Starting XI Revealed
The Reds: John Victor, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, The full-back, The midfielder, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
Malmö FF: Ellborg, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, The midfielder, The midfielder, The midfielder, Bolin, Gudjohnsen, The striker.
Referee: Harm Osmers (from Germany)
Starting Players
Rangers: The goalkeeper, The defender, Fernandez, Djiga, Aarons, Barron, The midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, The midfielder, The experienced midfielder, Gorby, The attacker, Navarro, The striker.
Official: Lindhout (from Netherlands)
Preamble
Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The both teams have a unique relationship, also meeting in Forest's previous European adventure in the 1995-96 Uefa Cup, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that links these clubs, with Britain's first £1m player Francis heading the only goal of a rather dull championship game to claim legendary status for the the English club.
"The legendary management duo, grey-sweatered and anonymous amid all the festivities and cheers, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," noted the journalist. This represented an remarkable feat that it is hard to see being repeated – from the lower league to European football in a short period."
It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Scandinavian side to advance to the ultimate game under manager Houghton.
The current fixture is a very different to that peak, closer perhaps to the previous continental meeting between Forest and Malmö in the mid-nineties. Forest are riding high after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö haven't played officially since last month following the end of the Swedish league season. The general expectation is on the English side tonight.
Numerous other matches on offer in this clockwatch. The Glasgow club have already been beaten by a Portuguese opponent this season. Rangers are at the foot of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the group stage with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any hope of making a late surge for a qualification place.
Updates will continue with all nine of the 8pm kick-offs and provide the latest scores from the previous games, including Villa vs Young Boys and the Dutch-Scottish clash.
