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Europa League draw throws up Forest rematch with Malmo / Photo: Frederic DIDES - AFP
Europa League draw throws up Forest rematch with Malmo
Nottingham Forest were handed a reunion with Swedish side Malmo on their long-awaited return to continental competition as Friday's draw for this season's Europa League threw up a repeat of the sides' clash in the 1979 European Cup final.
Brian Clough's Forest won that final in Munich thanks to an iconic Trevor Francis header and went on to lift the European Cup again the following year during a remarkable period in the club's history.
They are back in Europe this season for the first time in 30 years and will also play Porto, Hungarian champions Ferencvaros and Midtylland of Denmark at the City Ground.
In addition, they will travel to Real Betis, Braga, Austrian champions Sturm Graz and Utrecht.
Nuno Espirito Santo's team finished seventh in the Premier League last season and would have been in the Conference League, but were promoted to the continent's second-tier competition because FA Cup winners Crystal Palace breached multi-club ownership rules.
Aston Villa are England's other representatives in the Europa League and will have high hopes of going all the way under tournament specialist Unai Emery.
The Spaniard has won the trophy four times, including three in a row with Sevilla in the last decade and with Villarreal in 2021.
Champions League quarter-finalists last season, Villa will tackle Red Bull Salzburg, Israeli champions Maccabi Tel-Aviv, Young Boys and Bologna at home -- they beat the Italian Cup holders 2-0 at Villa Park in last season's Champions League.
Villa will also visit Feyenoord, Fenerbahce, Basel and Dutch Cup winners Go Ahead Eagles.
Celtic dropped into the Europa League after losing to Kairat Almaty of Kazakhstan in the Champions League play-offs but the Scottish title-holders were handed a draw which would perhaps not look out of place in Europe's elite club competition.
They will play 2023 Europa League runners-up Roma, Braga, Sturm Graz and Utrecht at home.
In addition, they will go to Midtjylland and Bologna as well as two former European Cup winners in Feyenoord and Red Star Belgrade.
Rangers, humiliated by Club Brugge in the Champions League play-offs, will also entertain Roma, who are coached by Gian Piero Gasperini, a Europa League winner with Atalanta two years ago.
The Ibrox side will also take on Braga, Bulgarian champions Ludogorets and Genk of Belgium in Glasgow, while they will travel to Porto, Ferencvaros, Sturm Graz and Brann of Norway.
The first round of matches in the Europa League will take place on September 24 and 25, with the league phase concluding on January 29.
The top eight clubs in the 36-team competition at the end of the league phase will advance directly to the last 16, with those finishing from ninth to 24th contesting a play-off round for the right to join them.
This season's Europa League final will take place at the Istanbul home of Besiktas on May 20, 2026. Tottenham Hotspur won the trophy last season, beating Manchester United in the final in Bilbao.
Europa League teams:
Roma (ITA), Porto (POR), Rangers (SCO), Feyenoord (NED), Lille (FRA), Dinamo Zagreb (CRO), Real Betis (ESP), Red Bull Salzburg (AUT), Aston Villa (ENG)
Fenerbahce (TUR), Braga (POR), Red Star Belgrade (SRB), Lyon (FRA), PAOK (GRE), Viktoria Plzen (CZE), Ferencvaros (HUN), Celtic (SCO), Maccabi Tel-Aviv (ISR)
Young Boys (SUI), Basel (SUI), Midtjylland (DEN), Freiburg (GER), Ludogorets Razgrad (BUL), Nottingham Forest (ENG), Sturm Graz (AUT), FCSB (ROM), Nice (FRA)
Bologna (ITA), Celta Vigo (ESP), VfB Stuttgart (GER), Panathinaikos (GRE), Malmo (SWE), Go Ahead Eagles (NED), Utrecht (NED), Genk (BEL), Brann (NOR)
(F.Allen--TAG)
