Gute Ausgangslage für den VfB: Im Playoff-Hinspiel der Europa League gewinnen die Schwaben gegen Celtic Glasgow mit 4:1 (2:1). Das Rückspiel findet kommende Woche Donnerstag statt.
For Nottingham Forest, and particularly Vítor Pereira and the 1,200 supporters who signed up to this trip, an evening in Istanbul they will not forget in a hurry.
After just three training sessions, Pereira’s first match in charge could scarcely have been more impressive than the statement victory Forest recorded at Fenerbahce to put themselves in command to reach the Europa League last 16. By the end, the yellow and navy stronghold had emptied and the Forest fans present savoured every moment. “Can we play you every week?” they sang, and then: “Where’s your famous atmosphere?”
It is just as well Martin O’Neill wanted no celebration of his 1,000th game in professional management. Stuttgart’s visit became men versus Bhoys and a deflating scene for anybody of Celtic persuasion.
This messiest of Celtic seasons, featuring umpteen managers and a similar number of low points has now featured supporters booing their own goalkeeper. Fans decided Kasper Schmeichel’s failure to keep out Jamie Leweling’s 57th-minute shot was a blunder too far. Schmeichel’s subsequent touches were jeered, albeit there was nothing he could do about the goal from Tiago Tomás in stoppage time that added gloss to Stuttgart’s position. The second leg feels like a fixture O’Neill could very much do without, coming days before a crucial visit to Ibrox.
Portuguese managed Fenerbahce and leads his new side into their Europa League playoff sounding confident
As Vítor Pereira wrapped up his pre‑match media duties at Sukru Saracoglu Stadium on Wednesday evening, his assistant Luís Miguel Moreira da Silva waited at the mouth of the tunnel. “Let’s go?” he said as Pereira eventually emerged, before the Nottingham Forest squad followed the pair on to the pitch.
Then it was down to business, Pereira’s first assignment in charge of Forest at one of his 13 former clubs, Fenerbahce. For Pereira, the Kadikoy district of Istanbul represents familiar territory, having lived in the city across two enjoyable but trophyless spells here as a manager, most recently in 2021.
When Lyon were spared from administrative relegation to Ligue 2 on appeal over the summer, the overriding feeling was one of relief. During John Textor’s time as owner, the atmosphere became toxic, with fans turning on the directors. More importantly, the American ran Lyon into the ground, with the club registering losses of more than €200m in his final season in charge. Michele Kang came in as president and a place in Ligue 1 was secured but, as thoughts turned to the future last summer, fans must have felt uncertain and even trepidatious.
Lyon’s place in the top flight was guaranteed by providing assurances to the DNCG, French football’s financial watchdog, that the club would sell players and reduce their wage bill. The stripping of the club’s most prized assets had already begun earlier in the summer when Rayan Cherki left to join Manchester City. Georges Mikautadze and Lucas Perri would also depart, both bringing in considerable sums; Nemanja Matic, one of the highest-paid players on the wage bill, was released; and Alexandre Lacazette’s deal expired.
Benfica goalkeeper Trubin scored in 4-2 win over Madrid
Eddie Howe’s men face 3,000-mile trip for first leg
Real Madrid have been dealt an instant rematch with José Mourinho’s Benfica in the Champions League playoffs. The Portuguese club will seek a repeat of Wednesday’s astonishing 4-2 victory against the Spanish giants, when their goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin scored deep into injury time to send them through, and host the first leg in Lisbon.
It is the headline tie in a draw that also gives Newcastle a 3,000-mile journey to Azerbaijan for a first leg against Qarabag. Eddie Howe’s side will feel confident after an impressive display in holding Paris Saint-Germain, last season’s winners, to a 1-1 draw at Parc des Princes on Wednesday, although they will be aware that the Azeri champions, beaten 6-0 at Liverpool, held Chelsea to a 2-2 draw on home soil in November. They will face Barcelona or, in an all-Premier League clash, Chelsea if they go through.
Nineteen-year-old fires winner to give Villa 3-2 win
Rangers’ poor campaign ends with 3-1 loss to Porto
The 19-year-old Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba was the hero as Aston Villa came from two goals down to beat Red Bull Salzburg 3-2 at Villa Park, though they lost Ollie Watkins to injury in the first half.
Jimoh-Aloba hit the winner with three minutes remaining, tucking Kadan Young’s low cross into the corner to cap a fightback that looked unlikely after a limp showing for an hour.
Celtic race into 3-0 lead inside 19 minutes and win 4-2
O’Neill’s side now face either Stuttgart or Ferencvaros
This was only briefly a little more fraught than it needed to be and looked as if it would be for Celtic. Martin O’Neill can focus on the most important factor in that he has guided the Scottish champions into the Europa league’s playoff phase. Job done, once again, for the effervescent O’Neill. Ferencvaros or Stuttgart lie in wait after Celtic closed in 21st place.
Celtic were fully deserving of their win in what unexpectedly developed into an entertaining clash with Utrecht. O’Neill, thought to be a managerial yesterday’s man not so long ago, continues to do his bit for 70-somethings everywhere. The Irishman will know Celtic must improve to make meaningful, further progress in this competition but such detail can wait. Even continuation in the Europa League had looked a long shot at one point. Utrecht will be delighted to see the back of a tournament which yielded just a single point from eight grisly fixtures.
Presumably, come Friday lunchtime, Evangelos Marinakis will have more than one eye on events at the House of European Football, Uefa’s headquarters in Nyon.
Not only will Olympiakos discover their Champions League playoff opponents but Nottingham Forest will learn whether they will face Fenerbahce or Panathinaikos, his Greek team’s arch rivals, in the Europa League playoffs. Marinakis, the Forest owner, would be public enemy No 1 if Sean Dyche’s side end up across town in Athens.
Eddie Howe is now taking questions, and he says Bruno Guimaraẽs could feature against Aston Villa after suffering an injury against PSV in midweek. “Reasonably positive after the game, so we will give him every chance this weekend,” the Newcastle manager said.
Howe added that Dan Burn is back in training after suffering a punctured lung during December’s derby defeat to Sunderland – and was tight-lipped on transfers, saying the club “won’t panic” but will have to be guided by their PSR situation this month.
Nottingham Forest’s first European adventure for almost 30 years was supposed to be a hoot but the mood music that accompanied a slender defeat in Braga felt rather alarming. The fact is Forest failed to perform and a stale display was typified by the chain of errors that culminated in the captain, Ryan Yates, scoring an own goal that proved sufficient to earn the hosts victory.
A swell of the 2,100 away fans who made the trip to northern Portugal relayed their feelings to Sean Dyche and his squad, jeering the players on several occasions. At full time the question on supporters’ lips was a slightly more direct version of: what on earth was that?
Roger Federer, an ardent Basel supporter, was up in the stands, in the posh seats to be precise, but even he could surely ignore his allegiances and appreciate the grace with which Youri Tielemans clinched victory for Aston Villa.
Unai Emery turned to Tielemans at half-time and the midfielder delivered within eight minutes, his classy first-time finish regaining the lead, after Evann Guessand’s early strike was cancelled out. This represented a 14th victory in their past 16 matches and it felt a significant one, too, given the pileup at the top of the table amid the scrap to advance automatically to the last 16 in March.
Kalimuendo and Jesus goals give Forest 2-1 away win
Robbie Keane’s Ferencvaros defeat Rangers 2-1
Igor Jesus’s late goal sealed Nottingham Forest a 2-1 win in Utrecht and boosted their hopes of a top-eight finish in the Europa League group phase. Arnaud Kalimuendo’s second-half opener for Forest was cancelled out by the Utrecht substitute Mike van der Hoorn before Jesus stepped off the bench to fire home the visitors’ late winner.
Forest bounced back from last weekend’s disappointing defeat at Everton to secure their third win in this season’s competition – their first on the road – and move on to 11 points after six matches. Murillo, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Douglas Luiz returned from injury as Sean Dyche made nine changes from Saturday’s 3-0 loss, and his rejigged side made an impressive start to the first competitive meeting between the two teams.
Two matches is not an adequate window in which to judge a manager. Nonetheless, these are worrying times for Wilfried Nancy and Celtic. Seriously worrying, in truth.
Back-to-back losses since the Frenchman’s arrival would be bad enough without the rampant manner in which Roma ensured six points from six in visits to Glasgow during this season’s Europa League. What a canter this proved from minute one.
Donyell Malen has a cut to the head and two more goals to his name after leading Aston Villa to the verge of automatic qualification for the last 16 of the Europa League against a backdrop of more crowd violence from Young Boys supporters.
The Netherlands striker exemplifies Villa’s strength in depth but this 10th win in 12 games was marred by visiting fans ripping up seats, throwing missiles at stewards and Villa players – one striking Malen – and fighting with police.
“Champions of Europe, you’ll never sing that,” came the chant as Nottingham Forest supporters, not for the first time, enjoyed getting one over on Malmö. A lot has happened since Trevor Francis’s stooping header to clinch the European Cup in Munich in 1979 but Forest still cherish those days. A lot has also changed in the five weeks since Sean Dyche took the reins, Forest reinvigorated and a comfortable win thanks to goals by Arnaud Kalimuendo, Ryan Yates and Nikola Milenkovic enhanced their hope of qualifying for the Europa League knockout phase.
For Forest, this victory – against a Malmö side that had not played for almost three weeks after finishing sixth in their domestic league – represented a third straight win in all competitions and further built on the momentum gained from last weekend’s success at Liverpool. This was a re-run of Forest’s European Cup triumph in name but the game itself was free of any jeopardy or jitters.
Roma end Midtjylland’s perfect start to Europa League
Martin O’Neill wrote a memorable final postscript in his history with Celtic in Europe as the interim manager led his team to a 3-1 win over Feyenoord.
Goals from Yang Hyun-jun and Reo Hatate saw Celtic come from behind before half-time and substitute Benjamin Nygren added a late third as the Scottish champions revived their Europa League campaign.
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