BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Aston Villa faces Bologna to kick off its Europa League campaign on Thursday, hoping to put behind a miserable start to the season.

The English side has a coach no other team can match to do so: Unai Emery is the most successful manager in the competition with four Europa League trophies, three with Sevilla and one with Villarreal.

Emery led Villa to placings of fourth and sixth in the last two Premier Leagues and to the quarterfinals of the Champions League. But this season Villa is winless in the Premier League, scoring a single goal in five games and already eliminated from the English League Cup.

The game against the Serie A team is a rematch of their encounter last season at Villa Park in the Champions League, where Villa won 2-0.

Another team struggling

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