BOLOGNA, ITALY – FEBRUARY 08: Vincenzo Italiano head coach of Bologna FC during the Serie A match between Bologna FC 1909 and Parma Calcio 1913 at Renato Dall’Ara Stadium on February 08, 2026 in Bologna, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)
Vincenzo Italiano hopes Bologna have ‘turned a corner’ after their crisis and can build on that in the Europa League play-off with SK Brann. ‘It was an odd game in the group phase.’
The first leg kicks off in Bergen, Norway, on Thursday at 17.45 GMT (18.45 CET).
The Rossoblu plane arrived quite late and there was no time for a pitch inspection, but the coach was already concerned with what he could see of the turf.
“It’s dark, but the pitch still doesn’t look in perfect condition, so we’ll be able to evaluate it tomorrow,” Italiano told Sky Sport Italia.
“This is the first leg, we need to get a result that can allow us to do our best in the home match and go through to the next phase of the competition.”
Italiano and Bologna know Brann dangers
Brann have been focusing only on preparing for this game, as the Norwegian domestic tournaments are currently on their winter break.
These sides met at the Stadio Dall’Ara in the Europa League group phase, ending 0-0 despite Charalampos Lykogiannis getting sent off after just 23 minutes.
“They have been in a training retreat in Spain to prepare for this important match. We already faced them in the group phase, but I expect a different atmosphere on their own turf, we already saw other teams struggled here. We must adapt straight away to all the difficulties that it presents,” added Italiano.
“It was an odd game in the group phase, as we went down to 10 men straight away, but even then we did really well. It’s a long game for the play-off, it is decided over 180 minutes, so we’ll see what happens.”
Bologna had been in an epic crisis, crashing out of the Coppa Italia and sliding down the Serie A standings, but got back on track at the weekend with a 2-1 victory away to Torino.
“It was important to end that run of defeats in Serie A, but we must also try to build on that in Europe and the league, as we lost ground there and must show that we have turned a corner. Winning helps you to work with enthusiasm and confidence.
“The Europa League is a good tournament, it is satisfying to go far, and gives you the self-belief that we can also take to Serie A. We had cared about the Coppa Italia too, but unfortunately we went out there.”
Lykogiannis is out injured for this trip, with Lorenzo De Silvestri and Torbjorn Heggem cup-tied.
“I think teams involved in many competitions are always forced to evaluate the fixture list and the fitness levels, so we are forced to rotate,” concluded Italiano.
Bologna squad for Brann
Pessina, Ravaglia, Skorupski; Casale, Heggem, Lucumi, Joao Mario, Miranda, Vitik, Zortea; Ferguson, Freuler, Moro, Pobega, Sohm; Bernardeschi, Cambiaghi, Castro, Dallinga, Dominguez, Odgaard, Orsolini, Rowe