Bologna vs Udinese preview - Friuli boosted by Greek conquest

Udinese travel to Bologna on Sunday inspired by their ongoing European adventure.

The Friuli outfit delighted its fans by reaching the last 16 of the Europa League this week.

Udinese ousted PAOK Salonika with Thursday's 3-0 triumph in Greece and are the only Italian side left in the competition.

"I'm very proud of my players," Udinese coach Francesco Guidolin said. "It's a great result for us because we had not won on the road for some time and it is never easy to win in Greece.

"I really liked the fighting spirit shown by my team and the great desire of my players to go far in this competition."

Dutch side AZ Alkmaar awaits Udinese next in Europe but in the meantime, Guidolin's men will turn their attention to the domestic front.

Udinese had suffered back-to-back defeats heading into last weekend's clash with Cagliari but a goalless draw in that match lifted the Bianconeri back up to third place, level on 42 points with Lazio, who host Fiorentina on Sunday.

Udinese are still without the league's top scorer Antonio Di Natale, who is out injured.

Udinese have not won on the road since December 1 and they will have their work cut out at the Renato Dall' Ara stadium against a Bologna side that is on a seven-match unbeaten run in Serie A.

The Rossoblu followed their 3-0 triumph at Inter Milan with a 2-0 victory over Fiorentina on Tuesday to climb to 14th place.

Bologna coach Stefano Pioli has demanded more of the same from his players.

"We need to continue to work hard and try to achieve our aim of avoiding the drop as soon as possible," he said. "The game against Udinese represents a big test for us and we must be ready."

The hosts will be without striker Alessandro Diamanti, who serves a one-match ban.