Malmö vs Nottingham Forest, Rangers vs Braga, and More – UEFA Europa League Coverage
Live Updates
Major Moments
- Full-time: Villa 2-1 Young Boys
- Goal scored!: Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
- Game over: Feyenoord 1-3 Celtic
- Starting XI: Starting players for Forest vs Malmö
- Starting players: Rangers v Braga teams!
- Opening notes
Latest Standings
The initial outcomes have significant impact on the league rankings. Celtic climbed to 17th place and returned to the secure knockout positions.
| Rank | Side | P | Difference | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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
Aston Villa secured for the win and moved level on points with front-runners Midtjylland at the top of the league phase standings. Villa made hard work of that at the end.
GOAL! Aston Villa 2-1 Young Boys (Joël Monteiro 90+1)
The Swiss side created a lifeline through Monteiro but had just four more minutes to find an equaliser!
Glasgow Side Wins 3-1
A famous and valuable win for the Glasgow side. Although they went 1-0 down, Celtic roared back with goals from the Korean forward, Reo Hatate and Benjamin Nygren.
Match Updates
Villa, at the same time, retained a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at the stadium.
Malen's second goal there sparked furious scenes in the away end, with Young Boys supporters engaging with police. Scuffles broke out and projectiles hurled at both the authorities and at the playing surface, with the goalscorer being struck in the head by a throwable object.
Lineups: Forest vs Malmö
Nottingham Forest: The goalkeeper, Abbott, Milenkovic, Murillo, Morato, Yates, Sangare, Dominguez, McAtee, Hudson-Odoi, Kalimuendo.
The Swedish side: The goalkeeper, Stryger Larsen, Jansson, Duric, Rosler, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, The midfielder, Bolin, The forward, Busanello.
Match official: The German referee (from Germany)
Starting Players
The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, The full-back, Barron, Diomande, The midfielder, Gassama, Danilo, Chermiti.
Braga: Hornicek, Gomez, The center-back, The defender, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, Moutinho, Gorby, Martinez, Navarro, Horta.
Official: The Dutch referee (from Netherlands)
Historical Context
The European clash and memories of 1979. The two clubs have a historical link, also competing in Forest's last European campaign in the UEFA Cup of 1995-96, but it is the continental championship 46 years ago that connects these teams, with Britain's first £1m player Francis scoring the winner of a rather dull championship game to secure historic victory for the the English club.
"Forest's famous bosses, modestly dressed amid all the colour and celebration, stood for a moment on a bench calmly observing the revelry," noted the journalist. This represented an remarkable feat that it is unlikely to be replicated – from the lower league to continental competition in just three years."
It's also interesting to pause a little on Malmö, who became the pioneering and only Nordic team to advance to the ultimate game under English manager Bob Houghton.
This match is a very different to that pinnacle, closer perhaps to the earlier European encounter between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are riding high after thrashing Liverpool at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since early November following the completion of Allsvenskan. The smart money is on the home team tonight.
Plenty of other action on offer in this live coverage. The Scottish side have already been defeated by a Braga this season. Rangers are last place of the league rankings at the half-way stage of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They desperately need a victory if they are to have any hope of making a comeback for a knockout position.
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 Aston Villa v Young Boys and Feyenoord v Celtic.
