European Super Football

Celtic 2 - 1 Sturm Graz Celtic mounted an impressive second-half surge to secure their first Europa League victory of the campaign and overcome 10-man Sturm Graz. Author |  Sean M Stadium |  Celtic Park Celtic corner Liam Scales and Benjamin Nygren struck in quick succession as Brendan Rodgers’ side finally found their rhythm, much to the delight of a relieved Celtic Park crowd. The Scottish champions entered the night under scrutiny, with only a single point from their opening two group fixtures and a league defeat by Dundee still fresh in the mind. Given testing away trips to Midtjylland and Feyenoord looming next month, the need for three points here felt crucial. Closer analysis of what happened in Glasgow Pre-match huddle There was early frustration, followed by Kelechi Iheanacho limping off within minutes. It did appear to be a worrying sign. Celtic’s energy and ambition were clear, but their end product remained elusive, even as they carved out a series of clear...

Nottingham Forest 2 - 0 Porto Sean Dyche enjoyed an ideal introduction as Nottingham Forest manager as penalties from Morgan Gibbs-White and Igor Jesus secured a valuable Europa League victory. Author | Frank L Stadium | The City Ground The win delivered Forest’s first triumph since their Premier League opener in August, their first clean sheet since April and a promising debut result for Dyche following his arrival earlier in the week. It was also their first win in any European competition since the 1995/1996 season. The wider impact of this result Forest have been engulfed in turmoil during the early months of the campaign, with Ange Postecoglou dismissed on Saturday after only 39 days in charge , having succeeded Nuno Espirito Santo in the summer. There was no immediate serenity at a raucous City Ground, although Dyche quickly instilled a sense of belief and structure. Gibbs-White converted confidently from 12 yards after Jan Bednarek handled inside the area midway through ...

Brann 3 - 0 Rangers Danny Rohl’s introduction as Rangers head coach brought little respite to the beleaguered Scottish side. Author | Mark Lee  Stadium | Brann Stadion A sharp and composed Brann eased to victory and left Rangers rooted to the bottom of the 36-team league.  Emil Kornvig and Jacob Sorensen struck either side of the interval to take advantage of Rangers’ wastefulness, before a late finish from the lively Noah Holm deepened the gloom for the visitors in Bergen. Rohl arrived only three days earlier, so a rapid transformation was never likely, yet this outing served as a reminder of the ongoing problems that have haunted Rangers throughout a troubled campaign. There were early signs of hope  Rangers opened with urgency and purpose, pressing high and carving out an early opening as Youssef Chermiti could not make clean contact with a deft Joe Rothwell ball. Jack Butland was kept busy as the visitors drifted back into old habits, producing a series of sto...

Go Ahead Eagles 2 - 1 Aston Villa Emiliano Buendia missed a second-half penalty as Aston Villa slumped to a defeat against a spirited Go Ahead Eagles side. Author | Peter Grainger  Stadium | De Adelaarshorst The result leaves Villa seventh in the table, while the Dutch club rise to tenth, also on six points, ahead of Thursday evening’s later fixtures. Evann Guessand’s early finish looked to have set Unai Emery’s side on course to maintain their perfect record in the competition. But the hosts equalised just before half-time when Mathis Suray’s deflected shot beat Emiliano Martinez, before Mats Deijl put them ahead just after the hour with a neat lift over the Villa goalkeeper. Buendia then fired over from the spot late on after Dean James was penalised for handball, sparking wild celebrations inside the compact De Adelaarshorst stadium. It was a famous victory for the Eredivisie side, who qualified for Europe by winning the Dutch Cup last season, their first major trophy i...

Sturm Graz 2 - 1 Rangers Rangers’ troubled start to the season deepened with a second successive Europa League defeat, this time against Austrian champions Sturm Graz. Author | Mark Lee Stadium | Merkur Arena View from the away end A stoppage-time winner at Livingston on Sunday had finally given Russell Martin ’s side their first Premiership victory at the seventh attempt, but any sense of momentum was quickly undone by Tomi Horvat ’s early strike. Rangers contributed to their own downfall once again. James Tavernier’s careless throw-in deep inside his own half was punished swiftly, the ball worked back and fired beyond the uncertain Jack Butland. The defence as a whole was culpable for the second. A precise free-kick sliced through a static backline and Otar Kiteishvili, the Georgian international, finished decisively before half-time. READ MORE |  Braga stun Celtic after VAR controversy READ MORE |  Postecoglou endures fan backlash after a damaging defeat If the night looked...

Nottingham Forest 2 - 3 Midtjylland Ange Postecoglou endured a furious supporter backlash as his winless start as Nottingham Forest head coach stretched on with a damaging defeat to Midtjylland. Author | Frank L Stadium | The City Ground The Danes spoiled Forest’s party on the club’s long-awaited return to European football at the City Ground, 29 years since their last appearance. Postecoglou has failed to win any of his opening six matches since taking over from Nuno Espírito Santo last month and chants of “sacked in the morning” rang out from the stands as the game drifted towards its close. Midtjylland exposed Forest’s frailty at set pieces in the first half, with Ousmane Diao and Mads Bech punishing slack defending. Dan Ndoye briefly drew the hosts level between those goals, only for the visitors, second in Denmark’s Superliga, to reclaim the lead within two minutes. It was a stuttering performance from Forest, who lost Murillo to injury again, against a physical and well-dril...

Celtic 0 - 2 Braga Celtic suffered further European disappointment as goals in each half and a controversial disallowed equaliser earned Braga victory in what was a chaotic encounter. Author |  Sean M Stadium |  Celtic Park Kick-off Kasper Schmeichel had an error-strewn game in goal and failed to keep out Ricardo Horta 's early long-range effort, which stunned the Celtic Park crowd into silence. The Dane then did well to keep out a late shot but was helpless when the ball bounced off Gabri Martinez in a botched clearance and rebounded into the net to seal all the points. After their Champions League qualification failure against Kairat Almaty , and an opening Europa League draw with Red Star Belgrade , this continued Celtic's disappointing start to their European campaign. In fact, so sharp has been the drop-off since last season, that Brendan Rodgers ' side may struggle to qualify for the latter stages of the Europa League unless they can find their way again, and q...

Rangers 0 - 1 Genk Rangers’ woeful start to the season continued as Oh Hyeon-gyu’s goal, combined with Mohamed Diomande’s first-half red card, handed Genk a Europa League victory. Author |  Mark Lee Stadium |  Ibrox Kick-off in Glasgow Under-pressure head coach Russell Martin was seeking successive wins for the first time, but his side were second-best for long periods against a Belgian side who squandered numerous opportunities. In recent seasons, this competition has offered Rangers a welcome distraction from domestic struggles, but it quickly became apparent that even that would elude them this time. The result added to Martin’s mounting frustrations, highlighting his inability to generate momentum or positivity. Discipline issues cost Russell Martin’s side Rangers were already on the back foot before Diomande lunged recklessly at Zakaria El Ouahdi just before half-time. A straight red card was fully justified. Earlier in the match, John Souttar had appeared to provide a ...

Aston Villa 1 - 0 Bologna  Captain John McGinn struck the decisive blow as a nervous Aston Villa scraped their first win of the season with a narrow victory over Bologna. Author | Jay Dean Stadium | Villa Park Players and fans celebrate Unai Emery’s side opened their Europa League campaign with three points but offered little to suggest their stuttering start is behind them. Villa looked tentative throughout and Ollie Watkins squandered the chance to ease the tension when his second-half penalty was saved. The win at least halted a frustrating run after a turbulent week off the pitch, with the president of football operations Monchi, departing and Roberto Olabe arriving from Real Sociedad as his replacement. McGinn’s early strike from the edge of the box, his second goal against Bologna after scoring against them in last season’s Champions League, proved enough. Before that Evann Guessand had already tested Lukasz Skorupski, who also denied the lively Donyell Malen as Villa pressed...

Red Star Belgrade 1 - 1 Celtic Celtic earned a hard-fought point in their Europa League opener against Red Star Belgrade in a contest that rarely sparked into life. Author |  Sean M Stadium | Stadion Rajko Mitić Celtic fans watch on in the background Second-half goals from Kelechi Iheanacho and Marko Arnautovic ensured the spoils were shared, though neither side offered much to suggest they would have belonged at Europe’s top table. Iheanacho, reunited with Brendan Rodgers after joining late in the transfer window , replaced the ineffective Daizen Maeda at the interval and justified the change almost immediately. The former Manchester City and Leicester forward latched on to a clever pass from summer signing Benjamin Nygren and finished calmly past goalkeeper Matheus, moments after squandering a simpler chance from close range. Red Star, however, had threatened before the break. Bruno Duarte struck the side netting and later rattled the crossbar in a first half where the hosts look...

Real Betis 2 - 2 Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest were denied a winning start to their Europa League campaign as Antony struck an 85th-minute equaliser for Real Betis. Author | Kieran M Stadium | Estadio La Cartuja de Sevilla Forest players celebrate Forest, playing in continental competition for the first time in 29 years, endured a difficult start when Cedric Bakambu fired the hosts ahead on 15 minutes. The visitors responded quickly, though, with Igor Jesus levelling from close range four minutes later after fine work from captain Morgan Gibbs-White . The Brazilian forward, a £10m summer signing from Botafogo , put Forest in front in the 23rd minute with a well-placed header from Douglas Luiz ’s corner. He almost had a hat-trick soon after, his effort blocked following an enterprising run from Elliot Anderson , who impressed throughout in midfield. Callum Hudson-Odoi also struck the post as Forest pushed for a decisive third. They were ultimately denied victory when former Manch...

Aberdeen 2 - 2 FCSB Dante Polvara and Ester Sokler came off the bench to breathe life into Aberdeen’s Europa League ambitions, rescuing a draw against 10-man FCSB after trailing by two goals. Author | Mark Lee Stadium | Pittodrie Pre match atmosphere Defensive errors threatened to undo the Scottish Cup winners in the play-off first leg at Pittodrie, even after the Romanian champions were reduced to 10 men for almost an hour. Jack Milne and Gavin Molloy collided under a high ball, allowing Daniel Birligea to break the deadlock while both sides were still at full strength. Just after the interval, Molloy and substitute Mats Knoester failed to clear their lines and Birligea capitalised again, squaring for Darius Olaru to double the lead. That lapse undermined the advantage Aberdeen might have gained from Juri Cisotti ’s dismissal shortly before half-time for a rash challenge on Nicolas Milanovic . READ MORE |  Europa League 25/26 season But Polvara ’s introduction shifted the m...

Hibernian 1 - 2 Midtjylland (Midtjylland won 3-2 on aggregate) Hibernian suffered European heartache as Junior Brumado's sensational goal for Midtjylland in the last moments of extra-time knocked them out of Europa League qualifying. Author | Sean M Stadium | Easter Road A bumper crowd inside Easter Road were silenced by the piece of brilliance from the Brazilian, whose winner came as the game looked destined for a penalty shootout. The second-round tie was finely poised at 1-1 after the first leg, and it took until four minutes into extra-time in Edinburgh before Dario Osorio's powerful strike from distance opened the scoring in the second. Rocky Bushiri responded to draw Hibs level as bedlam ensued in the stands, but Brumado would have the final say with a magical finish. Hibernian now drop into Conference League qualifying where they will face Partizan Belgrade next week. More analysis of what happened After holding their own in Denmark against seasoned European camp...