Forest vs Malmö, Rangers vs Braga, and Additional – UEFA Europa League News

League Position

These early results have significant impact on the competition standings. The Glasgow side rose to 17th position and are back in the safety of playoff places.

Match Result: Villa 2-1 Young Boys

The English side clung on for the three points and went equal on points with leaders Midtjylland at the peak of the competition table. Villa struggled of that at the end.

90+1: Monteiro Pulls One Back

Young Boys earned a hope through Monteiro but had just additional time to get the tying goal!

Celtic Secure Victory

A significant and important win for the Glasgow side. Even after falling 1-0 down, Celtic fought back with goals from Yang Hyun-jun, Hatate and the Swedish striker.

Latest Action

The Birmingham side, concurrently, held onto a 2-0 lead over Young Boys with approximately five minutes left at Villa Park.

The Dutch forward's brace there sparked furious scenes in the visitors' section, with Swiss fans confronting police. Physical altercations occurred and projectiles hurled at both the officers and toward the field, with the goalscorer being caught on the head by a plastic cup.

Lineups: Forest vs Malmö

The Reds: John Victor, The defender, The center-back, Murillo, Morato, Yates, The defensive midfielder, Dominguez, McAtee, The winger, Kalimuendo.

Malmö FF: The goalkeeper, Larsen, Jansson, Duric, The full-back, Haksabanovic, Johnsen, Skogmar, The attacker, The forward, The striker.

Official: Osmers (Germany)

Lineups: Rangers vs Braga

The Glasgow side: Butland, Tavernier, Fernandez, The defender, Aarons, The midfielder, Diomande, Raskin, The attacker, Danilo, Chermiti.

Braga: The goalkeeper, The defender, The center-back, Niakate, Arrey-Mbi, Zalazar, The experienced midfielder, The midfielder, The attacker, The forward, Horta.

Official: Allard Lindhout (Holland)

Match Background

Nottingham Forest v Malmö and memories of 1979. The these sides have a unique relationship, also facing each other in Forest's last European campaign in the mid-90s European competition, but it is the European Cup final decades past that entwines these two together, with Britain's first £1m player Francis netting the decisive goal of a rather dull championship game 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 calmly observing the mafficking," noted the journalist. This represented an remarkable feat that it is difficult to imagine happening again – from second tier to continental competition in just three years."

It's also interesting to consider Malmö, who became the first, and to date the last Swedish club to make the championship match under manager Houghton.

Tonight's game is a far cry from that peak, closer perhaps to the Uefa Cup first-round tie between Forest and Malmö in 1995-96. Forest are absolutely buzzing after defeating Liverpool convincingly at Liverpool's home on Saturday, while Malmö have been inactive since 9 November following the end of the Swedish league season. The smart money is on the English side tonight.

Plenty of other action on offer in this clockwatch. The Scottish side have already been lost to a European rival this season. Rangers are rock bottom of the league rankings at the midpoint of the league phase with no points whatsoever. They urgently require a victory if they are to have any chance of achieving a comeback for a knockout position.

Updates will continue with all the late games and provide the current standings from the concluded fixtures, including the Birmingham match and the Dutch-Scottish clash.