Complacency warning from Ulster's Jonny Bell heading into Zebre clash

The Parma-based club have only registered one league win in the last two seasons, lost all 18 games last term and conceded 734 points.

However, Ulster are without the World Cup quartet of skipper Iain Henderson, centre Stuart McCloskey and front row duo Rob Herring and Tom O’Toole.

Ulster are also dealing with an extensive injury list with includes Marty Moore, Alan O’Connor, John Cooney and Luke Marshall.

“We know it is not going to be easy and I don’t say that lightly, we know it will be genuinely tough over there, we know they are a side that is proud, they are a side that is at home, it is their first game and they are excited about playing as well,” said Bell. “We have to make sure that we do all our fundamentals incredibly well.

“They ran Leinster pretty close out there, they gave the Bulls a scare, it's definitely going to be a really competitive game.

“Italian rugby obviously had a disappointing World Cup but Italian rugby’s age grades are getting better.

“Their national team is young and a lot of their players are playing for two particular sides, there is strength in Italian rugby...they just had a disappointing World Cup by their perspective.”

Ulster under Bell last season had the third best defence in the URC.

And while the new artificial pitch at Kingspan Stadium will hopefully add impetus to the home side’s attack Bell knows every visiting team will relish it as well.

“You're trying to limit those transitionary moments where you might have a prop where he might not normally be or a disconnect in defence,” he said. “Ultimately you're trying to make sure we get good two men tackles that slow the ball up.

“It's the speed of ball in phase play that hurts defences because the ball moves quicker than the man.

“They can obviously move the ball quicker and get the ball to space if we allow two or three second rucks.”

“That’s what the attack coaches want.”