Aston Villa have lost three of their last 14 away matches in all competitions
Bologna are without a win in their last three home games (2L, 1D)
Recommended bet: Aston Villa to win
Aston Villa have impressed on the road in Europe and they will be determined to continue that form when they head to the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara for their Europa League quarter-final first leg against Bologna on Thursday evening.
Head coach Unai Emery, who has won this competition on four previous occasions, has guided the Villans to the last eight of the competition this season.
Beating a strong Lille side 3-0 on aggregate in the last round, Villa now have an Italian job on their hands and they will be eager to take a lead back to Birmingham for the second leg next week.
The latest Bologna vs Aston Villa odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Bologna will be without Martin Vitik due to suspension, while Benjamin Dominguez, Charalampos Lykogiannis, Thijs Dallinga and Jens Odgaard all face a race against time to be ready for Thursday's game after recent injuries.
As for Villa, the international break came at a good time and Belgium midfielder Youri Tielemans is pushing for a starting role after several weeks on the sidelines.
On-loan winger Jason Sancho is unavailable after suffering an unfortunate shoulder injury in a friendly against Elche last week.
Boubacar Kamara is still sidelined through injury, while fellow midfielder Ross Barkley is ineligible after he was omitted from Villa's Europa League squad.
The stats
Villa earned a 1-0 win over Bologna when these sides met in the league phase of the Europa League earlier this term.
Bologna are without a win in their last three home games, while they have won just two of their last 12 games in all competitions.
The Villans have lost just three of their last 14 away matches in all competitions (9W, 2D, 3L) and are currently on a seven-game winning streak in the Europa League.
Scotland midfielder John McGinn has scored in both of the previous two meetings between these sides.
The latest Bologna vs Aston Villa odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Having already beaten Bologna earlier this season, Villa know what it takes to overcome this Serie A outfit and can get the job done on Thursday evening.
The Rossoblu appear to be in a bit of a rut at the moment and this looks like a good time for Emery's side to be playing them.
It might well be a low-scoring encounter, but Villa are good value to edge this one and give themselves an advantage to take into the second leg back in the West Midlands next week.
