Europa League draw live: Aston Villa, Celtic and Rangers to learn 2025/26 opponents before Conference League draw

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The Independent

·29 August 2025

Europa League draw live: Aston Villa, Celtic and Rangers to learn 2025/26 opponents before Conference League draw

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Spurs snatch narrow win over Man Utd in dismal Europa League final

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The likes of Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace will learn their opponents for continental competition as the draws for the league phases of the Europa League and Conference League take place in Monaco.

Drama surrounding FA Cup champions Palace’s participation in Europe has dominated the summer, with a breach of Uefa’s multi-club ownership rules seeing them demoted from the Europa League to the Conference League. Premier League counterparts Nottingham Forest have benefitted from the ruling, being bumped up to the second-tier tournament.

Forest join Villa in the draw as well as bitter Scottish rivals Celtic and Rangers, who both crashed out of the Champions League play-offs this week. Russell Martin’s side were thrashed 9-1 on aggregate by Club Brugge, while Celtic suffered a humiliating shootout defeat to Kairat Almaty from Kazakhstan.

A variety of top European sides, including FC Porto, AS Roma, Lyon and Real Betis, will similarly vie for continental glory.

Nottingham Forest is ‘perfect place to be’

Omari Hutchinson admitted Nottingham Forest was the “perfect place to be” after he signed a five-year deal with the club.

He told Forest TV: “It’s been a long and difficult few weeks. I’m really excited to be here and just can’t wait to get started.

“I know a lot of players here. They told me how good it is and how well I’ll progress as a player. It’s just the perfect place to be.

“I was just doing pre-season with my brother. I get a message from him (Anderson) and he’s telling me to come and I said, ‘Listen, I’ll try my best’, but yeah, he convinced me to come.”

Nuno Espirito Santo says Nottingham Forest exit rumours are ‘absurd’

Nuno Espirito Santo hit out at “absurd” rumours that he could leave Nottingham Forest in the wake of revealing his relationship with owner Evangelos Marinakis had frayed.

“Absolute nonsense. Absurd. This narrative, it’s absurd,” retorted Nuno, when asked about the reports.

Yet when pressed as to whether he was confident he would still be Forest’s manager when the transfer window shuts on September 1, he replied: “I cannot answer that question, but what I know is that I am working and trying to do my job the best I can.

“Of course, the situation has to be solved and we are responsible people. We can have a good conversation to create a good platform for what is more important, the team.

“We’re going to have it. We must. We need to have this conversation and we will have it. This is what I think is more important than anything.”