Bologna coach Vincenzo Italiano has explained what Bologna need to do in order to get a positive result against Aston Villa in the Champions League on Tuesday, has revealed the latest fitness updates from the Rossoblu camp and has also explained what to expect from Unai Emery’s side at Villa Park.
The Rossoblu coach conducted his customary pre-match press conference from the Midlands on Monday evening.
Bologna were held to a 2-2 draw away against Genoa in Serie A over the weekend, which means they have not won in any competition since the end of September, but Italiano is still pleased from some of his side’s recent performances.
Italiano is aware, however, that Bologna need to start picking up points as swiftly as possible if they are to continue in the Champions League beyond January.
“It’s an important game and we want to pick up points, because it’s a mini-league,” Italiano told the media at his press conference.
“We will obviously have to give it our all, we’ll need a great performance in order to get a result. We’ve played well over the last two games, now we need to show a bit of fury and aggression.”
Italiano has revealed that star attacker Dan Ndoye is back in training and ready to go against Villa, having missed out on the trip to Genoa over the weekend.
“He’s recovered and is fine, he was a big loss for us against Genoa, but it’s better to skip one game rather than risk a more serious injury. We’ll see who plays, we’ve only had one day to prepare for it.”
Italiano on Bologna requirements and Aston Villa expectations
The coach then expanded on Bologna’s recent results and their need to start picking up wins in Europe.
“The result is always the main target, but you get there through your performance. We’ve been trying to forge our identity little by little, but we’re getting there. We’ll also need a bit of luck, because I thought we deserved to win against Shakhtar, and we deserved a goal at Liverpool as well.
“Whatever happens, we have to remember that we are playing the best teams in Europe and we need a strong mentality for that. We need to play, sweat and suffer to bring home the points.”
Italiano also provided an assessment of what to expect from Aston Villa from his pre-match analysis.
“Out of possession, they create a block in the middle of midfield and they re-set. They try to make you play in order for them to attack the spaces behind. They let you play, but they are very strong when they gain possession and they know what to do. They are also very strong on set pieces.”
Aston Villa-Bologna will kick off at 20.00 BST on Tuesday evening.
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