Aston Villa could be undone by their OWN PLAYER vs Bologna despite him never starting a game as rule explained

ASTON VILLA could be undone by their OWN player when they play Bologna tonight.

Unai Emery’s side are looking to make it three wins from three in the Champions League after a 3-0 win over Young Boys and 1-0 win over Bayern Munich.

The next test as they bid to strengthen their spot in the top eight qualifying spots sees them host Italian side Bologna.

However, Villa may end up shooting themselves in the foot.

That is because they have Samuel Iling-Junior on loan at the Serie A outfit.

Iling-Junior joined the midlands club as part of the deal that took Douglas Luiz to Juventus.

But Villa opted to loan the 21-year-old out in order to continue his development before he ever played a game for them.

While this would not be a problem if it was an English domestic competition, there are no rules restricting loan players from facing off against their parent club in Uefa competitions.

Previous examples where this has been seen included Philippe Coutinho facing off against Barcelona while playing for Bayern Munich, scoring two goals and adding an assist in an 8-2 win.

Another saw then-Chelsea loanee Thibaut Courtois playing for Atletico Madrid and subsequently knocking out the Blues.

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Kingsley Coman is another prime example when he made one and scored one goal for Bayern Munich to knock Juventus out at the last-16 stage in 2016.

Fortunately, Villa’s fate will not be decided by tonight’s result, though it could serve to be a dent to their aspirations to make the knockout rounds.

Iling-Junior has played five times off the bench for Bologna this season, scoring once.

Bologna lost 2-0 to Liverpool in their last Champions League game, while their opener ended in a 0-0 draw with Shakhtar Donetsk.

Speaking about his return to England to play Villa Iling-Junior told Sky Sports: “You always want to feel wanted and have conversations with the people around you.

“Especially being part of a swap deal, you want to know you’re not just a part of it and are someone that is wanted by the club.

“Aston Villa made me feel that way.”

On his loan transfer, he added: “It was more about seeing the progression of my career and my development.

“I could have had another year where I was coming off the bench and not getting as many minutes as I would like.

“So I spoke to the coach and we decided it was best for me to go on loan.”

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk