Postpublished at 50 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Bologna win the ball and then lose it, win it again, lose it again.
Villa try to counter through Donyell Malen but he's held up in the box.
Summary
Follow Aston Villa v Bologna, plus Thursday's other Europa League ties
McGinn fizzes in opener from distance, Watkins misses penalty
Villa looking for first win of season
Follow Rangers v Genk here
Postpublished at 50 mins
Postpublished at 21:07 BST
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Robbie Savage
Forest Green manager on TNT SportsThat second goal is so important. Unai Emery, his players and the fans in here won't be comfortable until they get that.
Image source, Getty ImagesPostpublished at 47 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Maybe Bologna's best chance as Federico Bernardeschi drifts in again from the right and smashes in a low shot which is saved by Marco Bizot.
KICK-OFFpublished at 46 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Can Villa get the job done?
Postpublished at 21:04 BST
HT: Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Owen Hargreaves
Former Manchester United midfielder on TNT SportsI think the boys need a bit of confidence ahead of the weekend. Ollie Watkins, Harvey Elliott and Jadon Sancho are three players who have plenty of quality that they can bring on.
Postpublished at 21:03 BST
HT: Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
The players are heading out now for some more football.
Postpublished at 21:02 BST
HT: Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Hopefully the second half starts soon. Because we have no more half-time small talk to dish out.
Postpublished at 20:57 BST
HT: Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Martin Keown
Former England defender on TNT SportsBologna only conceded five goals from set-pieces last season but Villa leave the space open to come into. McGinn's finish is as clinical as you'll see.
But it has come from Bologna's obsession with man-to-man marking.
The goal has given them a lot of confidence.
Image source, Getty Imagesget involved Get Involvedpublished at 20:55 BST
Comment at the top of this page to get involved
I think now Villa have just this lead, they need to forget about the previous game, get back to basics, take the ball up the field as far as they can go, look for your team mate before passing. Also any chances in long range shots, just shoot.
David
Postpublished at 20:51 BST
HT: Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
It wasn't a great first half. There were a combined 15 shots (seven to Villa) but the Marmite expected goals stat indicates it should be 0-0.
HALF-TIMEpublished at 20:48 BST
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Villa are halfway to a first win of the season thanks to John McGinn's strike.
Image source, Getty ImagesINJURY TIMEpublished at 45 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Just one added minute.
Red card for Rangerspublished at 20:46 BST
Rangers 0-0 Genk
A big blow for Rangers just before half time. A wild challenge from Mohamed Diomande and he is off!
Rangers are down to 10 men.
Follow dedicated coverage of this game here.
Image source, Getty ImagesPostpublished at 45 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
A heavy touch by Donyell Malen costs himself potentially a great shooting chance and then Matty Cash sees his effort blocked.
Postpublished at 44 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Lewis Ferguson has a shot blocked and then Nadir Zortea blasts a shot well over from range.
Postpublished at 43 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Bologna win a corner now.
Image source, Getty ImagesYELLOW CARDpublished at 42 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Matty Cash brings down Nicolo Cambiaghi near the corner of the box and picks up the game's first yellow card.
Postpublished at 20:42 BST
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Nick Mashiter
BBC Sport football news reporter at Villa ParkDespite Villa's lead it still feels a bit flat at Villa Park in the last 10 minutes. The hosts have created decent openings and Bologna's sluggish defence has given them plenty of encouragement but it is not an electric European night.
Postpublished at 41 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Federico Bernardeschi controls a fine crossfield ball and beats Emiliano Buendia far too easily but he keeps taking an extra touch and an extra touch and another and in the end Nicolo Cambiaghi shoots over.
Postpublished at 39 mins
Aston Villa 1-0 Bologna
Second time that Bologna's Federico Bernardeschi has cut inside and shot but this time it's wide of the far post.
Image source, Reuters
John McGinn scored his first goal since Aston Villa's Champions League quarter-final defeat to Paris St-Germain in April
At a glance
John McGinn gives Aston Villa the lead
Ollie Watkins has his penalty saved by Lukasz Skorupski
Santiago Castro hits the bar for Bologna
Captain John McGinn fired nervy Aston Villa to their first win of the season as they edged past Bologna.
Unai Emery's side began their Europa League campaign with an unconvincing victory against the limited Italians.
Villa did little to persuade those watching that their early-season slump is over, producing a tentative display in their league phase opener, with Ollie Watkins also missing a second-half penalty.
At least it ended their wait for a win following a week in which president of football operations Monchi departed and was replaced by former Real Sociedad sporting director Roberto Olabe.
Villa's winner came early when McGinn struck from the edge of the box, his second goal against the Italians after netting in the Champions League last season.
Evann Guessand had already been denied by Lukasz Skorupski while the goalkeeper also saved from the lively Donyell Malen as Villa chased a second.
Yet the hosts lost their momentum and Bologna sensed a comeback with Federico Bernardeschi testing Marco Bizot soon after the break.
Skorupski then saved Watkins' weak penalty, after the striker was brought down, to give Bologna further hope and Santiago Castro's header hit the bar with 20 minutes left.
Bologna also nearly grabbed a last-gasp leveller but Bizot kept out Martin Vitik's header.
Villa find their win but drastic improvement needed
Aston Villa hauled themselves across the line for a victory that gets their season under way but they are a long way from what is expected of them.
Their last European game at Villa Park was a swashbuckling, dramatic and heroic 3-2 Champions League quarter-final second leg win over Paris St-Germain in April which pushed the eventual champions - who squeezed through 5-4 on aggregate - to the limit.
Fast forward to September and Villa are lacking confidence and conviction as they tackle Europe again.
Watkins' missed second-half penalty summed up the lack of belief at Villa Park against an average Bologna who nearly grabbed a point, but for Bizot's late save to deny Vitik.
They got the job done but did nothing to show they are out of their rut. A positive start gave way to a stuttering display which better and more ruthless teams - in Europe and the Premier League - will punish.
It gives them something to build on before Sunday's visit of Fulham but the loss of form of Morgan Rogers and Watkins - both so pivotal last season - is a growing concern.
Unai Emery has so often squeezed every drop out of this Villa side since he joined just under three years ago but he needs to find some extra juice now.
The bar has been so high under Emery it is no wonder the questions about Villa's form and performance as there. And there needs to be a drastic improvement to even get close to those previous heights.
What is next for these teams?
Aston Villa host Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday before travelling to Feyenoord next Thursday for their second Europa League game.
Bologna face two away games next week as they go to Lecce in Serie A and SC Freiburg in the Europa League on Thursday.
Where next?
How to play
Rate players out of 10 for this game. The rater will close 30 minutes after the final whistle. You must be signed in to a BBC account to play.
1 Give it up
10 Pure perfection
Number: 40 M. Bizot
Number: 22 I. Maatsen
Number: 14 Pau Torres
Number: 4 E. Konsa
Number: 2 M. Cash
Number: 44 B. Kamara
Number: 7 J. McGinn
Number: 10 E. Buendía
Number: 27 M. Rogers
Number: 29 E. Guessand
Number: 17 D. Malen
Substitutes
Number: 12 L. Digne
Number: 19 J. Sancho
Number: 11 O. Watkins
Number: 1 Ł. Skorupski
Number: 22 C. Lykogiannis
Number: 26 J. Lucumí
Number: 41 M. Vitík
Number: 20 N. Zortea
Number: 28 N. Cambiaghi
Number: 8 R. Freuler
Number: 19 L. Ferguson
Number: 10 F. Bernardeschi
Number: 21 J. Odgaard
Number: 9 S. Castro
Substitutes
Number: 24 T. Dallinga
Number: 80 G. Fabbian
Number: 2 E. Holm
Number: 7 R. Orsolini
Number: 11 J. Rowe
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users.
Related topics
UEFA Europa League Scores & Fixtures
Thursday 25th September
UEFA Europa League Table
On Thursday 25th September
Skip to table keyMatch Participants:
- Aston Villa, Position 13, Points 3
- Bologna, Position 28, Points 0
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Panathinaikos | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
|
2 Dinamo Zagreb | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|
3 Midtjylland | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
|
4 Ludogorets Razgrad | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| |
6 Freiburg | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| |
8 Stuttgart | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
|
9 FCSB | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
|
10 Genk | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| |
12 Porto | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| |
14 Sporting Braga | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
|
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| |
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| |
18 Viktoria Plzeň | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
|
19 Ferencváros | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
|
20 Red Star Belgrade | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
|
21 Maccabi Tel Aviv | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
22 PAOK | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
|
23 Basel | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
|
24 Brann | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
|
25 Celta Vigo | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
|
26 Malmö FF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
| |
28 Bologna | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
|
29 Feyenoord | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
|
30 Go Ahead Eagles | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| |
32 Red Bull Salzburg | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
|
33 Utrecht | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
|
34 Fenerbahçe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 0 |
|
35 Sturm Graz | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0 |
|
36 Young Boys | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | -3 | 0 |
|
Key
- Position 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 : 8th Finals
- Position 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 : Play-off
Team Lineups
home team, Aston Villa
Manager: Unai Emery
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Pitch Formation
- 40, Bizot, Goalkeeper
- 2, Cash, Defender4, Konsa, Defender14, Torres, Defender22, Maatsen, Defender
- 7, McGinn, Defensive Midfielder44, Kamara, Defensive Midfielder
- 29, Guessand, Attacking Midfielder27, Rogers, Attacking Midfielder10, Buendía, Attacking Midfielder
- 17, Malen, Striker
Starting lineup
- Number 40, M. Bizot
- Number 22, I. Maatsen , substituted for L. Digne at 75 minutes
- Number 14, Pau Torres
- Number 4, E. Konsa
- Number 2, M. Cash , Yellow Card at 42 minutes
- Number 44, B. Kamara
- Number 7, J. McGinn , Captain, Yellow Card at 71 minutes
- Number 10, E. Buendía , substituted for J. Sancho at 58 minutes
- Number 27, M. Rogers
- Number 29, E. Guessand
- Number 17, D. Malen , substituted for O. Watkins at 58 minutes
Substitutes
home team, Aston Villa
- Number 26, L. Bogarde
- Number 83, B. Burrowes
- Number 12, L. Digne
- Number 9, H. Elliott
- Number 16, Andrés García
- Number 5, T. Mings
- Number 3, V. Lindelöf
- Number 95, R. Oakley
- Number 52, S. Proctor
- Number 19, J. Sancho
- Number 11, O. Watkins
away team, Bologna
Manager: Vincenzo Italiano
Formation: 4 - 4 - 2
Pitch Formation
- 1, Skorupski, Goalkeeper
- 20, Zortea, Defender41, Vitík, Defender26, Lucumí, Defender22, Lykogiannis, Defender
- 10, Bernardeschi, Midfielder19, Ferguson, Midfielder8, Freuler, Midfielder28, Cambiaghi, Midfielder
- 9, Castro, Striker21, Odgaard, Striker
Starting lineup
- Number 1, Ł. Skorupski
- Number 22, C. Lykogiannis
- Number 26, J. Lucumí , Yellow Card at 66 minutes
- Number 41, M. Vitík , Yellow Card at 66 minutes
- Number 20, N. Zortea , substituted for E. Holm at 70 minutes
- Number 28, N. Cambiaghi , substituted for J. Rowe at 70 minutes
- Number 8, R. Freuler
- Number 19, L. Ferguson , Captain
- Number 10, F. Bernardeschi , substituted for R. Orsolini at 70 minutes
- Number 21, J. Odgaard , substituted for G. Fabbian at 83 minutes
- Number 9, S. Castro , substituted for T. Dallinga at 83 minutes
away team, Bologna
- Number 24, T. Dallinga
- Number 80, G. Fabbian
- Number 2, E. Holm
- Number 14, T. Heggem
- Number 33, Juan Miranda
- Number 6, N. Moro
- Number 7, R. Orsolini
- Number 25, M. Pessina
- Number 13, F. Ravaglia
- Number 11, J. Rowe
home team, Aston Villa
Manager: Unai Emery
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Pitch Formation
- 40, Bizot, Goalkeeper
- 2, Cash, Defender4, Konsa, Defender14, Torres, Defender22, Maatsen, Defender
- 7, McGinn, Defensive Midfielder44, Kamara, Defensive Midfielder
- 29, Guessand, Attacking Midfielder27, Rogers, Attacking Midfielder10, Buendía, Attacking Midfielder
- 17, Malen, Striker
Starting lineup
- Number 40, M. Bizot
- Number 22, I. Maatsen , substituted for L. Digne at 75 minutes
- Number 14, Pau Torres
- Number 4, E. Konsa
- Number 2, M. Cash , Yellow Card at 42 minutes
- Number 44, B. Kamara
- Number 7, J. McGinn , Captain, Yellow Card at 71 minutes
- Number 10, E. Buendía , substituted for J. Sancho at 58 minutes
- Number 27, M. Rogers
- Number 29, E. Guessand
- Number 17, D. Malen , substituted for O. Watkins at 58 minutes
Substitutes
- Number 26, L. Bogarde
- Number 83, B. Burrowes
- Number 12, L. Digne
- Number 9, H. Elliott
- Number 16, Andrés García
- Number 5, T. Mings
- Number 3, V. Lindelöf
- Number 95, R. Oakley
- Number 52, S. Proctor
- Number 19, J. Sancho
- Number 11, O. Watkins
away team, Bologna
Manager: Vincenzo Italiano
Formation: 4 - 4 - 2
Pitch Formation
- 1, Skorupski, Goalkeeper
- 20, Zortea, Defender41, Vitík, Defender26, Lucumí, Defender22, Lykogiannis, Defender
- 10, Bernardeschi, Midfielder19, Ferguson, Midfielder8, Freuler, Midfielder28, Cambiaghi, Midfielder
- 9, Castro, Striker21, Odgaard, Striker
Starting lineup
- Number 1, Ł. Skorupski
- Number 22, C. Lykogiannis
- Number 26, J. Lucumí , Yellow Card at 66 minutes
- Number 41, M. Vitík , Yellow Card at 66 minutes
- Number 20, N. Zortea , substituted for E. Holm at 70 minutes
- Number 28, N. Cambiaghi , substituted for J. Rowe at 70 minutes
- Number 8, R. Freuler
- Number 19, L. Ferguson , Captain
- Number 10, F. Bernardeschi , substituted for R. Orsolini at 70 minutes
- Number 21, J. Odgaard , substituted for G. Fabbian at 83 minutes
- Number 9, S. Castro , substituted for T. Dallinga at 83 minutes
Substitutes
- Number 24, T. Dallinga
- Number 80, G. Fabbian
- Number 2, E. Holm
- Number 14, T. Heggem
- Number 33, Juan Miranda
- Number 6, N. Moro
- Number 7, R. Orsolini
- Number 25, M. Pessina
- Number 13, F. Ravaglia
- Number 11, J. Rowe
Match Officials
- Referee:
- Jesús Gil Manzano
- Video Assistant Referee:
- César Soto Grado
- Assistant Referee 1:
- Ángel Nevado Rodríguez
- Assistant Referee 2:
- Guadalupe Porras Ayuso
- Fourth Official:
- José Luis Munuera Montero
- Assistant VAR Official:
- Carlos del Cerro Grande
Match Stats
Key, Aston Villa v BolognaOverall possession
Aston Villa 46.9%Bologna 53.1%
Shots
Aston Villa 12Bologna 17Shots on target
Aston Villa 4Bologna 7Total touches inside the opposition box
Aston Villa 34Bologna 27Goalkeeper saves
Aston Villa 7Bologna 3Fouls committed
Aston Villa 16Bologna 14Corners
Aston Villa 8Bologna 3In-depth match stats
Attack
Shots
Aston Villa 12Bologna 17Shots on target
Aston Villa 4Bologna 7Shots off target
Aston Villa 5Bologna 7Attempts out of box
Aston Villa 2Bologna 6Hit woodwork
Aston Villa 0Bologna 1Total offsides
Aston Villa 2Bologna 9Distribution
Total passes
Aston Villa 341Bologna 379Pass accuracy %
Aston Villa 79.5Bologna 82.3Backward passes
Aston Villa 52Bologna 51Forward passes
Aston Villa 129Bologna 126Total long balls
Aston Villa 41Bologna 58Successful final third passes
Aston Villa 42Bologna 71Total crosses
Aston Villa 13Bologna 26Defence
Total tackles
Aston Villa 15Bologna 23Won tackle %
Aston Villa 60Bologna 52.2Fouls committed
Aston Villa 16Bologna 14Total yellow cards
Aston Villa 2Bologna 2Total clearances
Aston Villa 20Bologna 21Season so far
UEFA Europa League
Key, Aston Villa v Bologna
League position, Aston Villa 13th, Bologna 28thTotal points, Aston Villa 3, Bologna 0
Form guide
All competitions
Aston Villa draw
v Sunderland
1
1
Premier League
Bologna won
v Genoa
2
1
Serie A
Aston Villa draw
v Brentford
1
1
League Cup
Bologna lose
v AC Milan
1
0
Serie A
Aston Villa draw
v Everton
0
0
Premier League
Bologna won
v Como
1
0
Serie A
Aston Villa lose
v Crystal Palace
0
3
Premier League
Bologna lose
v Roma
1
0
Serie A
Aston Villa lose
v Brentford
1
0
Premier League
Bologna lose
v OFI
2
4
Club Friendlies
Previous meetings
All competitions
Aston Villa and BolognaAston Villa Won 1Bologna Won 0
Played 1
Draw 0
Previous scores
All competitions
UEFA Champions League
Aston Villa 2 , Bologna 0 on the 22nd of October 2024
Aston Villa
Bologna
22nd of October 2024
- Skip back to previous scores
- Skip back to previous meetings
- Skip back to form guide
- Skip back to season so far
Match Facts
This is the second consecutive season to see Aston Villa face Bologna in European competition – the Villans won 2-0 in last season’s UEFA Champions League at Villa Park.
Bologna are winless in their last five European games against English opponents (D1 L4) since a 1-0 win over Leeds United in March 1967 in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.
Aston Villa reached the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals last season before being eliminated by eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain. They netted 23 goals in 2024-25, their most ever in a major European campaign.
Bologna were eliminated in last season’s UEFA Champions League group phase, but they are featuring in major European competition in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1998-99 and 1999-00 in the UEFA Cup.
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery holds the record for the most games managed (93), most wins (56) and most titles won (4) in UEFA Europa League history (excluding a 3-0 Villarreal win v Qarabag in December 2020 that was postponed due to Covid-19). He has reached the final in each of the last five full campaigns in the competition (excluding 2019-20 when he was sacked by Arsenal).