Overview
In the most recent Premier League match, Aston Villa defeated Fulham 3-1 away from home. It was the 9th unbeaten match in all competitions for coach Unai Emery's team (won 7, drew 2).
In their first appearance in the Champions League (since the tournament was renamed in 1992), the Villa Park team also became an interesting phenomenon when they won the first two matches against Youngs Boys and Bayern Munich. Aston Villa even kept a clean sheet despite facing 17 shots from Bayern in the second match. With their form on the rise, the Premier League representative will certainly aim for another win.
Last season, Bologna had many similarities with Aston Villa, especially their free-flowing style of play. They excelled in qualifying for this year's Champions League. However, entering the new season, coach Vincenzo Italiano's team has only won 1 match in all competitions. They have also failed to score in the Champions League (0-0 draw with Shakhtar, 0-2 loss to Liverpool).
Strikers Jhon Duran and Ollie Watkins have now scored 11 goals for Aston Villa, better than the entire Bologna team (9 goals) in all competitions. The duo are expected to continue to shine as Aston Villa claim their third consecutive Champions League victory.
With neither side regularly playing in European competition, it is no surprise that they have never faced each other before. Bologna have only faced English sides five times, with two wins, two defeats and one draw.
Human resources situation
Aston Villa's injury problems are easing with Ezri Konsa, John McGinn, Amadou Onana and Jaden Philogene all back in action, while Tyrone Mings and Boubacar Kamara are also training normally.
On the other side of the front line, Bologna is still without star midfielder Lewis Ferguson and Oussama El Azzouzi.
Expected lineup:
Aston Villa: Martinez, Carlos, Konsa, Digne, Torres, Tielemans, McGinn, Onana, Rogers, Bailey, Watkins.
Bologna: Ravaglia, Holm, Erlic, Lykogiannis, Beukema, Moro, Freuler, Ndoye, Aebischer, Orsolini, Castro.
The match between Aston Villa and Bologna takes place at 2:00 a.m. on October 23 (Vietnam time).
