Aston Villa will face Bologna in the quarter-finals of the Europa League after the international break
Bologna’s Jens Odgaard(Image: Getty)
Bologna have been dealt a double injury blow ahead of their Europa League quarter-final with Aston Villa.
Unai Emery’s side will return to action after the international break with the first leg of their last-eight tie against the Italian outfit on April 9. The return fixture will then take place at Villa Park a week later, on April 16, with a semi-final spot up for grabs.
Ahead of the first meeting between the two teams, Bologna have provided an update on two of their players. Tommaso Pobega and fellow midfielder Jens Odgaard are both set for spells on the sidelines.
FOLLOW OUR FACEBOOK PAGE! Get more news and AVFC analysis via our Aston Villa FB page
Providing an update on the duo, Bologna’s official website said in a statement: “Tommaso Pobega has undergone medical tests which revealed a low-grade right hip flexor injury. He is expected to be out for 2–3 weeks.
“Jens Odgaard has suffered a slight strain of his left quadriceps. He is also expected to return in 2–3 weeks.”
Additionally, Bologna are set to be without first-choice goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski against Villa. The Poland international sustained a hamstring injury during his team’s league win over Sassuolo earlier this month and is a doubt to feature again this season.
Skorupski missed the second leg of Bologna’s Europa League last 16 tie against Roma and the Serie A defeat to Lazio prior to the international break. Federico Ravaglia started between the posts in both games.
Skorupski is expected to be out of action for between six and eight weeks. He sustained the injury late on against Sassuolo and was left in tears as he had to stay on the pitch due to Bologna having used up all their substitutions.
Every day, the BirminghamLive football desk strive to deliver news, features and transfer-related stories as a part of our overall package of Aston Villa content.
Our dedicated reporter John Townley – who you can follow on X – follows Villa home and away and offers you comprehensive coverage from matchdays, press conferences and everything that happens in between.
You can keep on top of the very latest updates when they occur with our free daily Aston Villa newsletter, giving you a round-up of the key stories in your email inbox.
If you want your favourite content straight to your phone, then sign up to get breaking updates and the biggest stories in and around the club on WhatsApp.
You can also get the latest Villa stories on your phone via the BirminghamLive app – which you can personalise – either on Apple or Android.
And our weekly Aston Villa podcast, Claret and Blue, available to watch and listen on all major streaming services. You can subscribe to the YouTube channel, or access the podcast on Spotify or via Apple.