Leading by one goal after a close-fought first leg, Bologna will aim to finish the job on Thursday, when they reconvene with SK Brann in the Europa League playoffs.
Vying to meet either Roma or Freiburg in the last 16, the pair will meet for the third time this season, after a league-phase draw at Stadio Dall’Ara and last week’s win for the Italian side in Norway.
Match preview
Continuing their recent return to form, Bologna seized a crucial lead last Thursday evening, as Santiago Castro’s early strike secured victory in Brann.
As a result, the Emilian side are well set to progress from their first UEFA knockout tie for 26 years, having also extended an impressive Europa League unbeaten streak.
After losing to Aston Villa on the opening matchday, Bologna have lost none of their next eight fixtures, which represents their best undefeated sequence in Europe since 1971.
Having narrowly failed to book automatic entry to the last 16 by finishing 10th in the league phase, Vincenzo Italiano’s men must take a longer route, while trying to arrest their slide down the Serie A standings.
Last year’s Coppa Italia winners endured a mid-season downturn, in which they struggled to pick up points and were knocked out of the cup, but there have since been some green shoots of recovery.
Either side of beating Brann, the Rossoblu have returned to eighth place by posting league wins over Torino and Udinese – the latter ending a four-game losing streak on home turf.
Even so, there still seems to be no domestic return route to Europe, leaving the Europa League as their primary focus.
Bologna have never lost a home knockout match in their continental history – winning 16 and drawing 11 of 27 previous games – so history suggests they should at least reach the next round.
© Imago / Goal Sports Images
In contrast to their opponents, Brann only secured a knockout spot by finishing 24th – the last available playoff place – having picked up just one point from their last three league-phase matches.
Though they still edged through – matching the club’s best performance in Europe’s second-tier competition; a run to the last 32 back in 2007-08 – Freyr Alexandersson’s side now need to win at the Dall’Ara in order to go any further.
Brann finished fourth in Norway’s top flight last year, earning qualification to next season’s Conference League, but they have since been in mid-winter hibernation domestically.
A new Eliteserien campaign kicks off midway through next month, but they must first try to better the result when they travelled to Bologna in November.
On that occasion, they were held to a goalless draw by their 10-man hosts, continuing the Bergen club’s wait for a first victory over Italian opposition.
Not only have they failed to win any of four previous meetings with Serie A sides – and without even scoring a goal – but Brann have also won just one of their last 12 European knockout games on the road.
Bologna Europa League form:
W D L D W W
Bologna form (all competitions):
L L L W W W
SK Brann Europa League form:
D D L D L L
Team News
© Imago
If Norway international Torbjorn Heggem can overcome a minor hip problem, Bologna boss Italiano should have all of his first-choice players available, only leaving three defenders on the sidelines.
Both ex-Brann man Eivind Helland and veteran full-back Lorenzo De Silvestri were omitted from the Rossoblu’s UEFA squad list, while Charalampos Lykogiannis – who was sent off when these teams met in November – is injured.
Thijs Dallinga and Castro will continue their battle for selection up front: the latter started Monday’s home win over Udinese and has scored in three of his last four appearances.
Restricted to pre-season friendlies and occasional Europa League contests, Brann have been without competitive domestic football for several weeks, but they are still burdened by a long absence list.
Saevar Atli Magnusson, Eggert Aron Gudmundsson, Jonas Torsvik, Niklas Jensen Wassberg, Sakarias Opsahl and Chilean striker Niklas Castro are all unavailable.
Set to start in the visitors’ midfield, Jacob Sorensen won the joint-most duels of any player during the league phase (62).
Bologna possible starting lineup:
Skorupski; Zortea, Lucumi, Casale, Miranda; Ferguson, Freuler, Moro; Bernardeschi, Cambiaghi; Castro
SK Brann possible starting lineup:
Dyngeland; De Roeve, Knudsen, Boakye, Soltvedt; Mhyre, Sorensen, Ingason; Mathisen, Holm, Thorsteinsson
We say: Bologna 1-0 SK Brann (Bologna win 2-0 on aggregate)
Bologna were the better side when Brann visited in November – despite going down to 10 men midway through the first half – and they hold a valuable lead from the away leg.
Having also halted their mid-season slump, the hosts can win again in Emilia-Romagna and proceed safely to the next stage.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
