Unai Emery has underlined the weight of history driving Aston Villa ahead of their UEFA Europa League quarter-final showdown with Bologna.
As the first leg approaches, Villa carry confidence into the tie, having already edged their Italian opponents earlier in the competition thanks to a decisive strike from John McGinn.
However, momentum remains finely balanced, with Bologna arriving unbeaten in their last 11 European outings.
Speaking ahead of the clash, Emery emphasized that Villa’s rich continental pedigree brings both pride and pressure.
“Aston Villa’s history is a massive history in a lot of things,” Emery said. “One remarkable moment was when Aston Villa won the European Cup.
“It is something that makes us responsible, and makes us feel that we are in a club that was successful in Europe.
“Individually, I’m feeling comfortable during the years and thankful for the teams I was coaching with the possibility to win this title or in the Champions League or Conference League.
“Each moment is a different challenge. Everything we did before is done and to do it again is the challenge we have. Every day with the players and with Villa is to build something for the history of the club.
“To win in Europe is very, very difficult.”As the tempo builds toward kickoff, Emery also highlighted the tactical battle ahead, noting Bologna’s intensity and aggressive approach: traits Villa must be ready to counter.
“Those two matches we played in Villa Park, how we knew Bologna is the same. How we play tomorrow will be more or less the same style.
“They are so, so intense and aggressive in their tactical idea, collectively getting a lot of duels. We’ve used our information from playing against them to try and understand how the match will go.
“Tomorrow we are ready, we are focused, trying to set our gameplan and trying to continue in our build, individually and collectively.”
Meanwhile, Villa will be without Jadon Sancho for the trip, although Emery offered a positive update on his recovery timeline.
“Sancho is not going to be out for a long time, but he’s still out,” Emery said. “Hopefully in a few days, maybe one or two weeks, he’s coming back but he’s progressing well.”
With history as motivation and form as fuel, Villa now step onto the European stage once more, aiming to write a new chapter in their continental.
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