Maccabi Tel Aviv have been given a suspended one-match away fan ban from Uefa for "racist and/or discriminatory behaviour" by it supporters during last week's Europa League game at German side Stuttgart. The Israeli club, whose supporters were barred from attending an away match at Aston Villa in November because of safety concerns, were also fined 20,000 euros (17,550) for their fans' conduct during the fixture on 11 December.
He is a really good manager I still really like him. I don't know how it all went down behind the scenes, winning the Europa League then getting sacked. I didn't expect Ange to be sacked. There were a lot of rumours, and everyone was on Ange, like the media there was not a day I was scrolling on my phone and saw nothing about our gaffer. There was always something about him added the 24-year-old.
The reality is we were not able to cope with the intensity. First half was difficult, we were not able to come out of the pressure. It wasn't easy for my players. I don't like to talk about luck. The first goal didn't help us. The second half was better. I cannot tell you [the players] didn't try, they tried. I'm not concerned, I really liked the reaction. They deserve at least to score one goal and the dynamic could change.
Basel: Hitz, Tsunemoto, Adjetey, Daniliuc, Schmid, Metinho, Leroy, Bacanin, Traore, Shaqiri, Otele. Subs: Salvi, Pfeiffer, Vouilloz, Koindredi, Broschinski, Soticek, Salah, Ajeti, Barisic, Ruegg, Cisse, Ze. Aston Villa: Bizot, Cash, Konsa, Lindelof, Digne, Bogarde, Onana, Guessand, Buendia, Sancho, Malen. Subs: Wright, Oakley, McGinn, Tielemans, Watkins, Garcia, Maatsen, Rogers, Kamara, Hemmings. Celtic: Schmeichel, Trusty, Scales, Tierney, Yang, McGregor, Engels, Tounekti, Nygren, Maeda, Hatate. Subs: Sinisalo, Doohan, Balikwisha, McCowan, Iheanacho, Kenny, Bernardo, Murray, Donovan, Ralston. Roma: Svilar, Mancini, N'Dicka, Hermoso, Celik, Soule, El Aynaoui, Rensch, Pisilli, El Shaarawy, Ferguson. Subs: De Marzi, Gollini, Angelino, Cristante, Pellegrini, Tsimikas, Kone, Dybala, Ziolkowski, Bailey, Franca, Ghilardi.
Best odds: 17/14 Bookmaker: BetUS Celtic and Roma collide at Celtic Park on Thursday evening in a pivotal Europa League clash, with both sides eager to strengthen their chances of reaching the knockout stage. Separated by just two points in the standings, neither team is assured of a top-24 finish, adding extra weight to this first-ever competitive meeting. The only time they faced each other before was a friendly match back in July 2004, which Roma won as Giallorossi icon Francesco Totti scored the only goal of the game.
Eventually falling to a worrying 4-2 loss at home against Nijmegen, it appears that Robin van Persie has some serious pressure mounting on his shoulders at De Kuip. Heading into November's fortnight interval with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Go Ahead Eagles, the former Arsenal skipper has seen his downbeat squad lose all of their previous three appearances across all competitions by an aggregate score of 8-3.
Police have arrested 11 people during heated demonstrations in advance of the politically charged Europa League match between Aston Villa and Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv in Birmingham. Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli supporters gathered outside the stadium to protest on Thursday evening, but despite the tensions, the game went ahead without major disruptions. list of 4 itemsend of list The match, in which the hosts beat Maccabi Tel Aviv 2-0, at Villa Park in Birmingham, was held under an enormous security operation.
The Maccabi Tel Aviv midfielder Issouf Sissokho urged his teammates to make their supporters smile against Aston Villa, after away fans were banned from the politically charged Europa League match on Thursday. The Israeli club's fans were prohibited from attending on public safety grounds but, despite the ban, West Midlands police have been granted section 60 stop-and-search powers and plan to deploy more than 700 officers around Villa Park to cope with protests and potential unrest.
Jurgen Säumel's side sit three points behind leaders Red Bull Salzburg with a game in hand, yet recent domestic form has been worrying-two straight defeats to Wolfsberger (3-1) and Rapid Wien (2-1) despite leading at halftime in the latter. In Europe, Sturm Graz have collected just three points from their opening three matches, beating Rangers 2-1 at home but losing to Midtjylland (2-0) and Celtic (2-1).
