EUROPA League
LIVE COVERAGE: EUROPA CUP – BAYER LERKUSEN 1-0 RANGERS; SEVILLA 2-0 ROMA
SEVILLA 2-0 ROMA
The referee ends the second half.
90’+ 10
Red card
The 24-year-old Mancini (Roma) is sent off after a VAR review, following a clash withL. de Jong.
FULL TIME: BAYER LERKUSEN 1-0 RANGERS
The referee ends the second half.
Leverkusen cruise into the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals, where they will face Inter Milan on Monday. A creditable European campaign for Rangers ends in defeat after Leverkusen produced the goal they had threatened in the first half through Diaby’s unstoppable finish six minutes after the break.
BAYER LERKUSEN 1-0 RANGERS
On aggregate, Rangers are 4-1 down
GOAL! Bayer Leverkusen 1-0 Rangers
Going from bad to worse for Rangers
And that will probably be all she wrote for Rangers’ European campaign this season
2nd Half Resumes
BAYER LERKUSEN 0-0 RANGERS
SEVILLA 2-0 ROMA
47 min: Rangers are coming forward in more numbers straight away, but Morelos hasn’t been up to standard so far. Is he thinking about that potential move away already? Can Aribo and co score three unreplied goal?
Half time: SEVILLA 2-0 ROMA
- Sevilla lead through fine Reguilón effort
- Koundé also hits bar for Los Blanquirrojos
- Reguilon 22nd minute
- En-Nesyri 44th minute
Half-time verdict, Rangers: The reality is the visitors need goals – three without reply, to be precise – to turn this tie around, so at some point in the second half they are going to have to take a gamble to get an opening goal that would make this second leg interesting.
Half-time verdict, Rangers: The positive is that Rangers haven’t conceded. At times, the pace of Kent and Barker in the wide areas has caused a degree of discomfort among the hosts’ rearguard.
Gooooal!
44 MIN En-Nesyri (Sevilla) scores!
Just as Roma were starting to settle, they suffer the sucker punch. More worrying defending, and a ruthless Sevilla are two to the good
SEVILLA 1-0 ROMA
22 MIN – Reguilón (Sevilla) scores!
BAYER 0-0 RANGERS
13th MIN. Good quick passing from Rangers, and it comes to Nigeria-born Aribo on the edge of the box but his first touch takes it beyond his reach and Leverkusen get it away
The stage is set for four sets of Europa Cup encounters. Follow the live coverage as we bring you updates. Two of the matches are currently on
SUMMARIES
BAYER LERKUSEN VS RANGERS
- Leverkusen host Rangers with a 3-1 1st leg advantage
- Postponed from 19 March due to COVID-19
- Rule changes introduced for this season
- Winner to face Inter in quarterfinals
SEVILLA VS ROMA
- One-off tie takes place in Duisburg
- Postponed from March due to COVID-19
- Winner to face IWolves/Olympicos in quarterfinals
Four-times Europa League winner Unai Emery booked an astonishing sixth final in the competition as a manager on Thursday when his Aston Villa team swept aside Nottingham Forest in the second leg of their all-English semi-final.
The 54-year-old Spaniard has won three times with Sevilla (2014, 2015, 2016) and once with Villarreal (2021) – either side of a defeat with Arsenal (2019) – deservedly earning him the epithet “Mr Europa League” from some fans and media.
Now he goes to the 2026 final seeking a fifth title, this time with Aston Villa against Bundesliga side Freiburg.
“His track record speaks for itself,” said Villa striker Ollie Watkins, heaping praise on his boss as the man to guarantee Europa League success. “We need to go and win it now.”
Emery was delighted with how his team overturned a 1-0 deficit to Forest in the first leg of the Europa League semi-final to score four times at home and win 4-1 on aggregate.
“Now we have to look to the final,” he said, hoping that Villa will do “something fantastic” for their fans.
Though thrilled at Thursday’s win, Emery left the pitch quickly after the final whistle, pumping his fist a few times at the crowd before letting his players enjoy the moment with fans
He and his Villa side will be favourites at the Europa League final in Istanbul on May 20, but Emery was taking nothing for granted. “Of course German teams are so difficult, their coaches, their players are so good,” he added of the upcoming opponents.
-Reuters
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List of teams which have qualified for the next round of the Europa League after the league phase concluded on Thursday, ranked by table position:
Directly to the round of 16:
1. Olympique Lyonnais (France)
2. Aston Villa (England)
3. Midtjylland (Denmark)
4. Real Betis (Spain)
5. Porto (Portugal)
6. Braga (Portugal)
7. Freiburg (Germany)
8. AS Roma (Italy)
Knockout phase play-off places (seeded)
9. Genk (Belgium)
10. Bologna (Italy)
11. VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
12. Ferencvaros (Hungary)
13. Nottingham Forest (England)
14. Viktoria Plzen (Czech Republic)
15. Red Star Belgrade (Serbia)
16. Celta Vigo (Spain)
Knockout phase play-off places (unseeded)
17. PAOK (Greece)
18. Lille (France)
19. Fenerbahce (Turkey)
20. Panathinaikos (Greece)
21. Celtic (Scotland)
22. Ludogorets (Bulgaria)
23. Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia)
24. SK Brann (Norway)
-Reuters
UEFA Europa League – Aston Villa v RB Salzburg – Villa Park, Birmingham, Britain – January 29, 2026 Aston
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Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv will not accept any away fan tickets for their Europa League match at Aston Villa next month, even if local authorities reverse the decision to ban their supporters, they said on Monday.
The ban followed safety concerns raised by British Police, who cited potential protests outside Villa Park, following demonstrations at Israel’s recent World Cup qualifiers in Oslo and Udine.
“From hard lessons learned we have taken the decision to decline any allocation offered on behalf of away fans and our decision should be understood in that context,” Maccabi said in a statement.
“We hope that circumstances will change and look forward to being able to play in Birmingham in a sporting environment in the near future.”
Aston Villa announced the decision last week, saying they were following instructions from the Safety Advisory Group (SAG), who are responsible for issuing safety certificates for games at Villa Park.
West Midlands Police described the match as high risk, past incidents, including violent confrontations and hate crime offences involving Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters ahead of a November 2024 game in Amsterdam.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar described the announcement as “shameful”.
Villa are third in the Europa League standings while Maccabi Tel Aviv are 30th after two rounds.
-Reuters
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