Bologna vs Aston Villa: tactical checkmate at the Stadio Dall’Ara 
On Thursday night, the Stadio Dall’Ara becomes the centre of Europe for a seriously tight Europa League quarter-final first leg. Bologna and Aston Villa meet for the third time in two seasons, with a place in the last four on the line. For Bologna, it’s about breaking the curse against English sides. Aston Villa, meanwhile, arrive with the tag of tournament favourites.
Bologna are out to bite at last 
In Emilia-Romagna, Bologna are living the dream. Still well off the pace in the race for European places in Serie A and nowhere near the bottom, the Rossoblu have thrown everything at the Europa League to save their season. Bologna haven’t tasted defeat on the continent in 11 games, a club record.
Even so, they’ve repeatedly run into Aston Villa on trips across the Channel and come up short every time. In front of their own fans, Vincenzo Italiano’s men know they’ll have to dig in and absorb plenty of pressure from the visitors. Bologna showed their steel by knocking out Roma in the last round and they’ll be desperate to get the Dall’Ara rocking and build a lead before the return leg. The job here is simple: don’t give their fans a stomach full of regret by full-time on night one.
Aston Villa, Unai Emery’s specialists 
Aston Villa can finally turn their full attention to the big target at the end of the season after an enforced break. Sitting fourth in the Premier League, Villa are in a dream spot in England. But it’s the Europa League that really gets the Villans going. They’re chasing an eighth straight win in this competition, driven by the unique know-how of their Basque boss.
Villa have occasionally looked shaky on tricky away trips this season, but the calm authority they showed against Lille in the last round put everyone at ease. Their big names arrive fresh after two weeks without a competitive match. Villa have serious firepower and won’t want to be caught cold. If this turns into a tight, stale contest, they’ve got the tools to nick it late on.
Probable line-ups
Bologna : Ravaglia ; Mario, Lucumi, Heggem, Miranda ; Moro, Freuler, Ferguson ; Bernardeschi, Castro, Rowe
Aston Villa : Martinez ; Cash, Konsa, Torres, Digne ; Onana, Tielemans ; McGinn, Buendia, Rogers ; Watkins
Football Prediction Bologna vs Aston Villa
Under 2.5 goals
This first leg between Bologna and Aston Villa looks like a giant game of chess between two coaches who respect each other a lot.
Bologna have failed to score in their last two meetings with the English side and should lean on a rock-solid defensive setup to stay alive before the return leg. At the other end, Villa may be happy to control the tempo and take a decent result home without overexposing themselves. Expect a tight, tactical scrap, with neither side keen to make the mistake that kills them. A narrow scoreline looks the most likely outcome from this opening act.
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