Key occasions
Preamble
For the primary time since arriving at Aston Villa in 2022, Unai Emery finds himself below stress. On the finish of final season, his gamers have been responsible of a whole no-show of their final sport, towards a Manchester United facet that had simply misplaced the Europa League remaining, which price them a Champions League spot, they usually've began this in comparable vein, sitting third-bottom of the desk and taking part in so badly their supervisor has already accused them of being lazy.
As such, right this moment's match with Bologna – whom Villa beat 2-0 in final season's premier competitors – is extra necessary than it appears. After receiving such public and stinging criticism, if they can not rouse themselves to ship a efficiency tonight, then what?
Life at Villa Park, although, feels like a pleasure relative to goings-on at Ibrox. Although Rangers managed their first win in six towards Hibs final weekend, Russell Martin continues to be in a pickle – one that may solely be resolved with a succession of fine outcomes and performances. Within the meantime, any defeat might imply the tip with tonight's match with Genk the newest check of his survival intuition.
Add to {that a} number of different matches, and we've a good night's rubber-necking in prospect.
Kick-off: 8pm BST
