Nottingham Forest, Celtic Head Into Europa League Play-Offs As Villa Win

Nottingham Forest progressed to the Europa League play-off round after a decisive 4-0 victory over Ferencvaros on Thursday, while Celtic secured their knockout phase spot with a win over Utrecht.

Aston Villa finished second in the league phase, coming back from a two-goal deficit to defeat Red Bull Salzburg 3-2, with their place in the last 16 already guaranteed.

Forest had a slim chance of climbing into the top eight before the final round of matches. They needed to defeat Robbie Keane’s Ferencvaros and hope for favourable results elsewhere.

Sean Dyche’s team did their part as Igor Jesus scored twice for Forest after Ferencvaros defender Bence Otvos netted an own goal. James McAtee scored a late penalty, but the win only secured a 13th place finish

overall for the Premier League club.

“It has not been easy through various games, the schedule, planning, travelling and all that sort of stuff. To come out of a disappointing one in Braga (1-0 loss last week) and then to deliver that I am very pleased,” Dyche told TNT Sports.

The twice former European champions Forest will discover their play-off opponent on Friday. They will face Fenerbahce or Panathinaikos over two legs next month, while Stuttgart or Ferencvaros await Celtic, who defeated Utrecht 4-2 after scoring three times in the first 19 minutes in Glasgow.

Benjamin Nygren put Celtic ahead before an own goal from Utrecht captain Nick Viergever. Arne Engels converted a penalty with Celtic cruising, but Utrecht pulled it back to within one until Auston Trusty’s header provided the hosts some breathing space.

Villa seemed destined for their second European defeat of the campaign when Salzburg took a 2-0 lead in Birmingham through goals from Karim Konate and Moussa Yeo.

Morgan Rogers reduced the deficit and Tyrone Mings headed Villa level, with 19-year-old Jamaldeen Jimoh-Aloba scoring his first senior goal to complete the comeback for Unai Emery’s men.

“It’s a proud moment for me on my European debut,” Jimoh-Aloba told TNT Sports. “It’s just really nice to make my family proud and stuff because of all the hard work. I’ve had a lot of lows this season and a lot of highs, but this is top.”

Villa, currently third in the Premier League, will have a welcome break before the last 16, where potential opponents include Lille, PAOK, Red Star Belgrade, or Celta Vigo.

Emery has won the Europa League a record four times as a manager, and Rogers believes that is a significant advantage for Villa.

“He knows how to get his way through a competition, especially this one. To have him in our corner guiding us through it is going to be massive,” said Rogers.

Lyon topped the table with seven wins from eight, completing the league phase with a 4-2 victory over PAOK. A minute’s silence was observed before kick-off in memory of the seven Greek fans killed in a minibus accident in Romania on Tuesday.

Midtjylland, Real Betis, Porto, Braga, Freiburg, and Roma all finished in the top eight, ensuring direct qualification for the last 16.

Rangers concluded a disappointing European campaign with a 3-1 loss at Porto, marking their sixth defeat in eight games in the competition.

(With Agency Inputs)