Serie A PREVIEW | Bologna v Inter

Bologna will hope to put an end to Inter’s perfect start to the new year when they meet each other at the Renato Dall’Ara tomorrow in Matchday 28 of the Serie A.

Bologna come into this match on the back of a six-game winning run, dismantling high-profile outfits like Lazio, Fiorentina and Atalanta. Due to these victories, they have managed to open up a four-point lead in 4th-place from 5th-placed Roma as they hope to qualify for the Champions League next season.

The Rossoblu last league game ended in a 2-1 victory in a spirited contest versus La Dea. Ademola Lookman gave the hosts the lead within the first 30 minutes and Bologna’s second-half comeback through goals from Joshua Zirkzee and Lewis Ferguson sealed the three points for them. It was an important win to follow up on the success against the Biancocelesti. 

The Renato Dall’Ara has become a fortress for Thiago Motta’s men and only Inter have gained more points than Bologna at home this season. The hosts for tomorrow are flying high this campaign as they secure second place in the points gained this new year alongside Milan. The clash tomorrow is surely going to be a spectacle. 

Meanwhile, Inter will hope to extend their winning run to 12 games in a row when they face an inspired Bologna side. With a win over newly promoted Genoa in their previous Serie A outing, the Nerazzurri have gone 15 points clear at the top of the table and have strengthened their grip on the Scudetto. 

Simone Inzaghi’s men have scored the most goals (69) and conceded the least (13) across Europe’s top five leagues this season. They will hope to stress on attacking gameplay tomorrow to keep the momentum going when they face Atletico Madrid in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 at the Wanda Metropolitan with a lead on aggregate. 

Inter have already suffered a defeat to Bologna this season when these two sides met in the Coppa Italia Round of 16. Late drama ensued in the match as Carlos Augusto gave the hosts the lead two minutes into extra time but a thrilling fightback from Bologna’s Sam Beukema and Dan Ndoye later knocked the Nerazzurri out of the competition. 

Results from their last five matches across all competitions

Bologna:

W W W W W

Inter:

W W W W W

Team News

Thiago Motta will have almost his full squad available for selection tomorrow. Adama Soumaoro will join Jesper Karlsson in the treatment room. 

With his goal against Atalanta, Joshua Zirkzee made an interesting record as he became the first Dutch player since Ruud Gullit in the Serie A to reach double figures. 

Dan Ndoye is expected to be dropped from the starting line-up and replaced with Alexis Saelemaekers. 

As for Inter, Capocannoniere rakings-leader, Lautaro Martinez will hope to break his scoring rut at the Renato Dall’Ara but he is set to face a battle against the Bologna defence. 

Davide Fratessi and Hakan Calhanoglu have resumed full training this week and the Turkish man may replace Kristjan Asllani after the latter scored the opener versus Genoa. 

Juan Cuadrado and Stefano Sensi are set to miss the match with injuries. 

Predicted XIs

Bologna (4-1-4-1): Skorupski; Posch, Beukema, Calafiori, Kristiansen; Freuler; Orsolini, Ferguson, Fabbian, Saelemaekers; Zirkzee

Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Martinez

Trambak Bhattacherjee | GIFN