Forest Hold Nerve, Palace Scrape Through as Celtic's European Dream Dies in Stuttgart

Nottingham Forest made hard work of their Europa League progression on Thursday night, but Vitor Pereira's side ultimately had enough to see off Fenerbahce and reach the last 16.

The Premier League outfit had done the heavy lifting in Istanbul with a commanding 3-0 first-leg display, yet they were given a proper examination at the City Ground. Kerem Akturkoglu struck twice in the opening 45 minutes—first after 22 minutes, then again three minutes into the second half—to haul the Turkish giants back into contention. When the forward converted a penalty after being fouled by Jair Cunha, suddenly Forest found themselves just one goal clear on aggregate.

Callum Hudson-Odoi's 68th-minute finish proved the steadier, restoring a two-goal cushion and allowing Forest to see out what had threatened to become a proper wobble. The tie looked far more competitive than it had any right to be, though Forest's opening-leg demolition job ultimately proved decisive.

Reaching the Europa League last 16 represents a genuine achievement for a side languishing in 17th place in the Premier League. They'll face either Real Betis or Midtjylland in the next round—opponents they've already encountered in the league phase, losing at home to the latter and drawing with Betis under Ange Postecoglou.

Crystal Palace's journey to the Conference League knockout stages proved equally unconvincing. After drawing 1-1 at home to Bosnian outfit Zrinjski Mostar last week—a result that had supporters questioning Oliver Glasner's future—the Eagles needed to rediscover their composure in the return fixture.

They managed it, though only just. A 2-0 second-leg victory at Selhurst Park proved sufficient, with Maxence Lacroix opening the scoring to edge Palace 2-1 clear on aggregate. Evann Guessand, the January arrival, wrapped things up late to confirm a 3-1 aggregate win.

Palace head into the next round against either Mainz or AEK Larnaca, though their European displays this season have hardly inspired confidence. Despite Glasner's pedigree—having won the Europa League with Frankfurt—the Eagles have struggled in continental competition.

Elsewhere, Celtic's European campaign came to an end in Stuttgart. The Scottish champions claimed a 1-0 victory in Germany, but it counted for nothing after their disastrous 4-1 home defeat last week proved fatal to their hopes.