Bologna boss makes 'remarkable' Liverpool claim ahead of Champions League clash
Liverpool will take part in their first Champions League home game of the season on Wednesday evening
Bologna boss Vincenzo Italiano has acknowledged his team must be perfect if they are to gain a positive result from Wednesday's Champions League clash with Liverpool.
The Reds will host the Serie A side at Anfield having already beaten a team from the Italian top-flight in AC Milan - and will be hoping for a similar scoreline on this occasion.
Bologna unexpectedly claimed a Champions League spot last season and kicked off their campaign in the competition with a 0-0 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk last week.
Their most recent result, a 1-1 draw with Atalanta on Saturday, saw Bologna hold on for a share of the spoils despite going down to ten men in the 51st minute of the match. Liverpool, meanwhile, won at Wolves to go top of the Premier League.
Aware his players will have to be at their very best to beat the Reds, with little room for error, Italiano admitted: "This team has to take it one game at a time, there was Atalanta today who are another Champions League team and last season won the Europa League. From tomorrow we’ll see who is in good shape, who can recover and prepare for yet another battle.
“We know there are mistakes we made today that we cannot afford to make again, as Liverpool’s strikers are so efficient and we’ll be in a remarkable atmosphere of Anfield.”
Opening up on the challenge coming Liverpool's way on Wednesday and in the coming weeks, Arne Slot said: "Two years ago was the last time we played [in the] Champions League and we all know what kind of a season that was. Last season we had a much better season, but then every time Virgil [van Dijk] and all these other players got a rest during the week and could play once a week.
"So, that's a completely different situation than playing Champions League during the week against a very tough and hard opponent and then playing Arsenal and then playing Aston Villa and then playing all these top teams that we're going to face after the next international break. For us, there's still – I've said it many times – there's a lot to prove, especially if you look back at the season two years ago and it's still almost completely the same group."
Via liverpool Echo
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