Italiano: ‘Bologna must be more efficient in front of goal’ | OneFootball

Bologna coach Vincenzo Italiano wants his players to be ‘more efficient in front of goal’ in tonight’s big Champions League clash against Lille and explains the surprise Lewis Ferguson return.

It kicks off at the Stadio Dall’Ara at 20.00 GMT.

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from this game and Aston Villa-Juventus on the Liveblog.

This is a must-win fixture for the Rossoblu, who earned just one point in the 0-0 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk before losing three in a row in Europe, all without scoring a single goal.

Italiano frustrated by Bologna issues

Virgil van Dijk, Thijs Dallinga and Alisson Becker in Liverpool-Bologna (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

“We must try to be super concentrated from the midfield up, because once we get it to the wings, we’ve got to fill that penalty area with bodies,” Italiano told Sky Sport Italia.

The big surprise this evening is that Lewis Ferguson gets his first start since undergoing anterior cruciate ligament surgery in April, while Thijs Dallinga is preferred to Santiago Castro after the 3-0 defeat to Lazio.

“Thijs has been improving lately, Ferguson now has a lot more dynamism than when he started training with us this season and it’s only right to throw him into the mix,” explained Italiano.

“Once we got down to 10 men, Castro ran for three men, so we need great fitness levels tonight and then those who come off the bench can try to shake things up.

“Everyone must be ready, because we will need all the players on the bench to give their contribution too.”

Bologna have not managed to score a single goal in the Champions League so far this season, but it has not been down to a lack of opportunities.

“We’ve had so many scoring opportunities and just lacked something in terms of precision and determination,” continued Italiano.

“One of our best performances was in Birmingham against Aston Villa, so I want to see a repeat of that, but being more efficient in front of goal.”