Unai Emery has warned his Aston Villa side to respect Bologna, and the Europa League itself, if they are to continue their progress in the competition with victory over their Italian opponents.

Describing the Serie A side as “a winner team”, Emery said Villa could not be considered favourites for this quarter-final as he sought to ensure his players’ heads are in the game following the extended international break that means Villa haven’t played a competitive match since 22 March.

“To win in Europe is very, very difficult,” Emery said, speaking before the first leg which takes place on Thursday night. “Firstly you must respect this competition. Because if you are not respecting the competition, if you are not focusing 100%, you are close to being out. And I have a lot of experiences with these situations.”

Emery, of course, has won the Europa League a record four times as manager but Villa have also played Bologna in each of the past three seasons of European competition. This is the first encounter that will be played in Italy, however, where Bologna sit eighth in the Serie A table and qualified from the round of 16 with a 4-3 win...