Champions LeagueThe opposition lowdown: Bologna
Get the lowdown on Bologna ahead of Liverpool's opening Champions League home match this evening.
The Reds' second league-phase fixture sees them face Serie A opposition once more in an 8pm BST kick-off at Anfield.
For an in-depth insight on what to expect from Bologna, Liverpoolfc.com spoke to TMG Italia founder Chris McMenamy - read his pre-match thoughts below...
Thank you for taking time to chat to us, Chris. Firstly, could you give us a brief overview of Bologna's journey to the Champions League...
Bologna's sporting director Giovanni Sartori deserves credit for their Champions League qualification. He was responsible for Chievo Verona's miracle in the early 2000s, when they went from Serie B to the Champions League. He left for Atalanta in 2014 and masterminded their success through intelligent, profitable player recruitment. He's now done the same at Bologna in two years.
It all came together last season with coach Thiago Motta creating a team with an organised, aggressive defence, one which thrived on having possession. Only Napoli had more possession in Serie A than Motta's team last season. Players like Riccardo Calafiori and Joshua Zirkzee became stars as Bologna finished fifth and qualified for the Champions League for the first time in 60 years.
However, Zirkzee and Calafiori departed for Manchester United and Arsenal respectively. Motta left to coach Juventus and was replaced by Vincenzo Italiano, from whom Motta took over at Spezia in 2021. Sartori has recruited players domestically and from across Europe this summer, needing to replace the two key departures and also improve the squad's quality and depth for this season's continental campaign.
And how have they fared on the pitch so far this season?
Bologna's start to this season has been identical to last year. One win, four draws, one loss for Italiano, though the first win didn't come until week five, which had some in the Bolognese media panicking. Expectation has increased since the team qualified for Europe, and although they don't expect a repeat this season, there will be pressure to at least challenge for a top-six finish.
Their only loss came at league leaders Napoli, a 3-0 defeat in which they had much more of the ball than the home side but were punished with goals at crucial stages of the match.
Bologna opened their Champions League campaign with a 0-0 draw at home to Shakhtar Donetsk, a match that had the hallmarks of the early stages of a new manager's reign. They often had the right idea but lacked the execution, looking like a team that wasn't yet at 100 per cent as they huffed and puffed without breaking Shakhtar down.
It is clear that Italiano needs to be given time to embed his tactical philosophy and fully integrate the new signings into the team. Motta was backed by the Bologna board through a tough start to his tenure, losing six of his first 11 games, including a 6-1 thumping at San Siro against Inter. He turned it around and guided Bologna to where they are now.
Who are Bologna's key men? Which players should Liverpool fans be keeping an eye out for in particular?
Zirkzee's departure has allowed his back-up, 20-year-old striker Santiago Castro, to shine. He has scored in his last three Serie A matches, but picked up a knock in Saturday's draw with Atalanta, so could be a doubt for this one. He has travelled; however, if the young Argentine isn't fully fit, Thijs Dallinga should start up front. He arrived this summer from Toulouse, for whom he scored against Liverpool in both Europa League group-stage games last season.
Dan Ndoye is one to watch. The winger is coming off the back of a fantastic Euro 2024 campaign with Switzerland and should combine well with Bologna's other winger, captain Riccardo Orsolini, to cause Liverpool some issues from wide areas.
In midfield, Bologna have players like former Nottingham Forest player Remo Freuler and exciting young talent Kacper Urbanski, who seems to be benefiting from Lewis Ferguson's long-term injury in getting more first-team minutes.
The wildcard for Bologna in this game could be Giovanni Fabbian, another young midfielder. Ex-Inter academy, Fabbian joined the club last year and has provided goals from midfield, much like Ferguson had been doing before his knee injury in April ruled him out until the end of this year.
Centre-backs Sam Beukema and Jhon Lucumi played together at times last season but have become the first-choice pairing since Calafiori left. Both are capable, modern defenders but should face one of the toughest tests of their careers on Wednesday night.
Castro is the goal threat Liverpool should worry about, if he's fit, but Bologna's threat from wide areas is something to keep an eye on in this match.
What do you think the view is in Bologna ahead of the game with Liverpool?
Bologna arguably won't expect to take anything from this match, but will perhaps be buoyed by Atalanta's success at Anfield earlier this year in the Europa League. Atalanta's high press and man-marking stifled Liverpool massively and Bologna were able to neutralise Atalanta for the most part at the weekend.
However, Liverpool are considered massive favourites for this game and rightly so. The Italian media saw what Arne Slot's team were able to do to Milan at San Siro a couple of weeks ago and will expect something similar on Wednesday night.
This match is probably a bit of a free hit, if Bologna are being realistic. However, the manager needs his players to put in a good performance and help convince the fans, board and media alike that this team are on the right track.
Interestingly, when Bologna last played in the competition in 1964, they lost a play-off to Anderlecht thanks to a coin toss. Had they gone through, they would have faced Liverpool.
Can you give us an insight into manager Vincenzo Italiano? What is his preferred style of play and what formation does he usually opt for?
Italiano came to Bologna after three seasons at Fiorentina in which they reached two Europa Conference League finals and a Coppa Italia final, all of which they lost. He was considered for the Napoli job before they hired Antonio Conte and his move to Bologna feels like a smart decision at this stage in his career.
He began coaching as an assistant at Venezia in 2014, months after ending a 20-year playing career as a holding midfielder. His coaching breakthrough came at Sicilian club Trapani, whom he guided to promotion from Serie C in 2019.
As mentioned above, Italiano coached Spezia, where he achieved an historic promotion to Serie A in 2021, then left the club for Fiorentina. Motta took over from him at Spezia, before leaving for Bologna a year later.
His teams tend to press high and control games through patient possession aimed at creating chances using talented wide players. At Fiorentina, he had Nico Gonzalez, whose performances under Italiano earned him a move to Juventus.
Bologna should line up in a 4-3-3 that sometimes may look like a 4-2-3-1. Essentially, it'll be a midfield three with two deep-lying players and one more attack-minded, what they would call a 'mezzala' in Italy, a half-winger. We should see one striker flanked by two wingers, who will be tasked with causing mayhem in the Liverpool box.
And, lastly, what would your predicted line-up for Bologna be?
Bologna (4-3-3): Skorupski, Posch, Beukema, Lucumi, Lykogiannis (Miranda), Freuler, Aebischer, Fabbian (Urbanski), Orsolini, Ndoye, Castro (Dallinga).
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