Bologna vs Aston Villa Preview

Bologna host Aston Villa at the Renato Dall’Ara on Thursday evening in the first leg of a Europa League quarter-final — a tie that reunites two sides who have already met twice in European competition this season, with Villa winning both previous encounters.

Bologna head into this one having won their most recent outing — a 2-1 win away at Cremonese in Serie A on April 5. Prior to that, they lost 2-0 at home to Lazio on March 22. Earlier in this run, a 4-3 win away at AS Roma in the Europa League second leg on March 19 — a breathless result that secured their passage to the quarter-finals — a 1-0 win away at Sassuolo, and a 1-1 home draw with Roma in the first leg complete a sequence of three wins, one draw and one loss. Bologna’s European form has been the standout element — their attacking output of 21 goals scored in the Europa League and a goal difference of +10 reflects a side that can hurt anyone on the break, though they have conceded 11 in the competition. The Dall’Ara crowd will be crucial to generating an atmosphere that can unsettle a Villa side who have won here on their previous European visit.

Aston Villa travel to Bologna in strong form, having won three of their last four outings. Their most recent result was a 2-0 home win over West Ham United in the Premier League on March 22. Prior to that, they won 2-0 at home against Lille in the Europa League second leg on March 19, completing a comfortable aggregate win. Earlier in this run, a 3-1 defeat away at Manchester United in the league, a 1-0 win away at Lille in the first leg, and a 4-1 home defeat to Chelsea round out a sequence that reflects a side that is formidable in European competition even when league results have been inconsistent. Villa’s defensive record in the Europa League is the standout statistic — just 6 goals conceded across the campaign and a goal difference of +11 — making them one of the tightest defensive units remaining in the competition. With 17 goals scored and 13 assists, they have the attacking tools to complement that defensive resilience.

The head-to-head record between these clubs — though limited in senior European competition — strongly favours Aston Villa, who have won both prior meetings without conceding. Most recently, Villa won 1-0 at home against Bologna in the Europa League in September 2025. They also won 2-0 at home in the Champions League in October 2024. Bologna have yet to score against Villa in either encounter.

Italian supporters can watch on Sky Sport 252 and Sky Sport Uno from 20:00 GMT on Thursday. UK and Irish fans can stream on TNT Sports 2 and HBO Max. US viewers can watch on Paramount+, TUDN USA and ViX. German supporters can follow on RTL+.

Bologna Form — Last 5 Games

Result	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Competition	Date
W	Cremonese	1-2	Bologna	Italian Serie A	Apr 5, 2026
L	Bologna	0-2	Lazio	Italian Serie A	Mar 22, 2026
W	AS Roma	3-4	Bologna	Europa League	Mar 19, 2026
W	Sassuolo	0-1	Bologna	Italian Serie A	Mar 15, 2026
D	Bologna	1-1	AS Roma	Europa League	Mar 12, 2026

Aston Villa Form — Last 5 Games

Result	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Competition	Date
W	Aston Villa	2-0	West Ham United	English Premier League	Mar 22, 2026
W	Aston Villa	2-0	Lille	Europa League	Mar 19, 2026
L	Manchester United	3-1	Aston Villa	English Premier League	Mar 15, 2026
W	Lille	0-1	Aston Villa	Europa League	Mar 12, 2026
L	Aston Villa	1-4	Chelsea	English Premier League	Mar 4, 2026

Head To Head — Last 5 Games

Home Team	Score	Away Team	Date	Competition
Aston Villa	1-0	Bologna	Sep 25, 2025	Europa League
Aston Villa	2-0	Bologna	Oct 22, 2024	Champions League

TV Listings / Streaming

Country	Channel(s)
Italy	Sky Sport 252, Sky Sport Uno
United Kingdom	TNT Sports 2, HBO Max
Ireland	TNT Sports 2, HBO Max
United States	Paramount+, TUDN USA, UniMás, ViX
Germany	RTL+
France	Canal+ Foot, myCANAL, Canal+ Live 2
Norway	Viaplay Norway
Canada	DAZN Canada, fuboTV Canada
Australia	Stan Sport
Portugal	DAZN1 Portugal, DAZN Portugal