Nottingham Forest v Midtjylland: Europa League last 16, first leg - as it happened
Key eventsShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureMatch report: Peter Lansley has filed his full-time take from the City Ground.Thanks for reading this minute-by-minute.ShareFull-time Europa League scores:Celta Vigo 1-1 LyonFerencvaros 2-0 BragaGenk 1-0 FreiburgNottingham Forest 0-1 Midtjylland“Celta held on until the 87th minute,” writes Kári Tulinius, “when a shot from Endrick slipped under the Galician goalkeeper, though it may have been Yaremchuck who forced it over the line. Lyon will be confident to win at home. This wasn’t their best performance in the Europa League, but scoring against a massed defence is never easy.”Full-time Conference League scores:Crystal Palace 0-0 AEK LarnacaFiorentina 2-1 Rakow CzestochowaCelje 0-4 AEK AthensSigma Olomouc 0-0 MainzAston Villa are the only English team (out of nine) to win in Europe this week.ShareUpdated at 18.10 EDTMidtjylland’s players are bouncing, the away end is bouncing. What a night for them – they’ve never played in the last 16 in a European competition, let alone progressed past this stage.ShareMidtjylland really weathered the storm (literally and figuratively) after Forest started the second half well. Elias Olafsson in goal made some impressive saves but the attacking quality came at the other end. Substitute Valdemar Byskov Andreasson hit the post from the edge of the box before Cho’s header made all the difference.That second-half downpour, my word.ShareFull-time: Nottingham Forest 0-1 MidtjyllandGue-Sung Cho’s 81st-minute header completes a textbook away performance for Midtjylland as they head to the return leg at home with a one-goal advantage. Nottingham Forest had far more of the ball and the chances, with 23 shots in total, but didn’t have the cutting edge in front of goal.ShareUpdated at 17.56 EDT90+4 min: Bakwa can’t pick anyone out with a cross and the referee comes over to book Tullberg in the dugout.Share90+3 min: Williams’ cross is behind Lucca and his stooped header is easily gathered by Olafsson.Share90+2 min: Bak gets lucky as his clearance rebounds off Hudson-Odoi for a Midtjylland goal-kick.Share90+1 min: Bakwa finds some space in the Midtjylland half but runs straight into the referee.Share90 min: Five minutes added on. Can Forest find something to take to Denmark?Share89 min: Bravo does well to shield the ball out for a goal-kick after Hudson-Odoi had tried to make inroads down Forest’s right. Midtjylland win a throw deep in the Forest half and take their time.Share87 min: Midtjylland are camped on the edge of their own box. Hutchinson tries to wriggle through a few bodies and, off balance, sends a cross sailing over the bar.Share85 min: It’s very quiet now, just the drums in the away end audible. Sangaré tries his luck from distance and his shot flies over.Share83 min: Forest have been punished for their wastefulness. Pereira sends on Bakwa for Aina, who was beaten to that cross by Cho. Anderson leads the response and his shot is deflected off Diao into the side netting. Murillo heads the resulting corner wide.ShareGOAL! Nottingham Forest 0-1 Midtjylland (Cho 80)The City Ground falls silent! Midtjylland work it to Diao, whose cross from deep is met by Gue-Sung Cho and his header is directed into the corner past the diving Sels. The away bench spills out into the dugout!ShareUpdated at 17.50 EDT78 min: Hutchinson shows nice skill to lift the ball over Bech at the start of a Forest counter that ends with Gibbs-White recycling the ball. Midtjylland fail to clear properly but Hutchinson’s pass into the area rolls through to Olafsson.Share76 min: Diao heads the ball out for a Forest corner and immediately goes down with some cramp. Everyone bunches together in the six-yard box, cutting up the turf nicely. Olafsson strolls out to catch Anderson’s corner.Share74 min: Forest can try a different approach with 6ft 7in Lucca in the box. Hudson-Odoi obliges with a cross that’s just too high for the big Italian striker.Share72 min: Midtjylland enjoy a spell in the Forest half. Bech’s long throw eventually leads to a corner that comes to nothing. They sense there’s something in this for them.ShareKári Tulinius has been watching Celta Vigo v Lyon: “Celta Vigo went ahead in the middle of the first half, and looked in control, restricting Lyon to half-chances and long-range shots. However, then Borja Iglesias, already on a yellow, elbowed Clinton Mata in the head and was sent off. It’s very much been backs-to-the-wall for the Galicians since.”Share69 min: Olafsson denies Anderson! The England midfielder twists past Diao and hits a shot right-footed that is too close to the Midtjylland goalkeeper.Domínguez and Jesus make way for Sangaré and Lucca.Share67 min: Hutchinson has a shot deflected up and Jesus heads it goalwards but it’s easy for Olafsson to gather. The rain has, mercifully for everyone, eased.Share65 min: The ball stops dead in the puddle that has formed on the centre circle but Gibbs-White can’t make the most of a promising Forest opening. Midtjylland are content to play, slowly, among themselves on the edge of the Forest box. Bak has a shot blocked by Milenkovic’s right boot.Share63 min: The Nottingham monsoon is easing, maybe? Forest’s momentum has been scuppered by the weather.Share61 min: Midtjylland send Lee on for the stricken Mbabu. He scoops the ball away after Gibbs-White fails to latch on to a pass in the middle. Domínguez then sends a ball across the face and Jesus doesn’t gamble.There are puddles forming on the pitch. Every hood and umbrella is up in the stands but they’re not making much difference. The tops are off in the away end.ShareUpdated at 17.24 EDT59 min: Midtjylland make two changes. Brumado and Simsir retreat to the relative dry of the dugout, with Uhre and Cho on in their place.Forest should score after Mbabu pulls up and lets Hudson-Odoi roam free into the area. He pulls it back for Gibbs-White, who lays it off to Hutchinson but Midtjylland get bodies in the way. Both of them should have shot when they had the chance.Share56 min: Mbabu tries to break at speed down the right but the ball won’t travel at the same pace on the sodden pitch. Not much else is happening/can happen in this weather.ShareUpdated at 17.16 EDT54 min: You can’t see much through the downpour and its reflection off the floodnights.ShareUpdated at 17.23 EDT53 min: I can’t quite remember seeing rain heavier than this during a football match. Not to mention the wind.Share52 min: Out of nothing, Andreasson hits a bouncing shot through the driving rain from distance that Sels scampers over to parry for a corner.The corner comes out to Andreasson, who pings his shot back off the post!Share51 min: Midtjylland are having to weather a storm. Manager Tullberg looks worried and sits down with his tactics board. Gibbs-White tries to flick the ball in Jesus’s direction but it bobbles through to Olafsson. The rain is getting heavier and heavier.Share49 min: Murillo plays a flat pass through the middle and Olafsson beats Gibbs-White to it just in time. Hudson-Odoi cuts inside and hits the side-netting.ShareUpdated at 17.09 EDT47 min: Forest make a fast start. Aina runs on to Hutchinson’s cutback in the penalty area and smacks a shot straight at a jumping Gibbs-White in front of him. Domínguez then flashes a cracking effort wide from the edge of the box – it just bends away at the last minute.ShareSecond half beginsChanges for both sides. Forest replace Morato (booked) with Neco Williams and Midtjylland swap out Denil Castillo for Valdemar Byskov Andreason.ShareUpdated at 17.08 EDTThe players head back out at the City Ground. On first-half evidence, Forest have it in them to establish a decent lead to take to Denmark next week.It’s going to plan for Midtjylland so far but they’ve not had a shot since the 3rd minute.ShareMore half-time reading: Barney Ronay on the Premier League’s midweek to forget in the Champions League.ShareEuropa League half-time scores:Celta Vigo 1-0 LyonFerencvaros 1-0 BragaGenk 1-0 FreiburgConference league half-time scores:Crystal Palace 0-0 AEK LarnacaFiorentina 0-0 Rakow CzestochowaCelje 0-3 AEK AthensSigma Olomouc 0-0 MainzShareHalf-time reading: Ollie Watkins made the difference for Aston Villa in their first leg at Lille earlier this evening.ShareBoth teams have had headers cleared off the line. Murillo kept out Júnior Brumado’s effort in the first few minutes before Philip Billing came to his goalkeeper’s rescue after he came for a corner and Igor Jesus looped one over him.Forest’s all-Brazilian back three lasted all of nine minutes after Jair Cunha was forced off with an ankle injury.ShareUpdated at 16.57 EDTHalf-time: Nottingham Forest 0-0 MidtjyllandNot a classic so far – and not helped by a referee cracking down on everything except some cheeky time-wasting by Midtjylland’s goalkeeper.Share
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