Fresh off ending a 17-match winless league run against AC Milan, Bologna welcome 15th-placed Cagliari to Stadio Renato Dall'Ara in Sunday's Serie A action, keen to notch a fifth consecutive home success.
The comeback 2-1 victory over the Rossoneri took Vincenzo Italiano's men into sixth, the final European spot in Italy's top flight, and the Emilians aim to consolidate their position against one of the division's worst travellers in this weekend's 27th round.
Match preview
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Goals from Santiago Castro and Dan Ndoye on Thursday night saw Bologna end a nine-year wait to beat Milan in Serie A — the Rossoblu's last success over the Rossoneri was a 1-0 triumph at San Siro in January 2016 — to boost their European qualification prospects.
That victory for Italiano's men in the rescheduled gameweek nine fixture also ended a 23-year wait to secure maximum points over the Italian giants on home soil, and the triumph means the Red and Blues enter Sunday's match with Cagliari occupying sixth place, the final continental spot, which guarantees qualification for the Conference League playoff round.
Italiano's troops aim for a fifth consecutive home victory this weekend to follow league successes over Monza (3-1), Como (2-0), Torino (3-2) and Milan (2-1), aiming to record five home wins on the spin in Serie A for the first time since 2023 — when they secured six triumphs on the trot between October and December of that year.
While a point will guarantee the Emilians holding on to sixth — they are two points clear of seventh-placed Fiorentina and have the head-to-head advantage after December's 1-0 triumph against the Viola — the Rossoblu could close the five-point gap on Juventus in fourth and Lazio in fifth, with the Bianconeri hosting Hellas Verona on Monday and the capital club travelling to Milan.
Having accrued 13 points from 15 on home soil in 2025 and notching 16 overall since the turn of the year — only Roma (20), Juventus (17) and Inter (17) have more — the fans at the Dall'Ara will back their team to inflict more away misery on Sunday's opponents.
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That outcome is anticipated for Cagliari, given the Sardinians' struggles on the road this term, highlighted by picking up two wins from 12 fixtures on their travels heading into this weekend's visit to Emilia-Romagna.
Davide Nicola's men have secured 10 points away from home, level with promoted Como but bettering only Parma (eight), Monza (seven) and Venezia (four), underscoring their inability to string positive results together outside Sardinia.
With away points accounting for 40% of their tally, Gli Isolani might have to improve on performances and results away from the Unipol Domus to be assured of top-flight safety this term.
Although the Islanders are not in immediate danger, especially considering 18th-placed Empoli's four-match losing run, only four points separate Nicola's 15th-placed men from the dreaded relegation zone, with Lecce level on 25 points and Parma two behind in 17th.
A winless Serie A run at Bologna since 2010 will not fill the travelling support with confidence, as they travel to Emilia-Romagna knowing they have lost on eight of their last 11 visits to this weekend's hosts, including the most recent three.
Team News
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Bologna suffered no fresh injury problems against Milan, leaving Emil Holm and Estanis Pedrola as the only players unavailable for selection.
With a match-winning strike against the Rossoneri, his second this season, Ndoye moved level with teammates Riccardo Orsolini and Jens Odgaard, and the six-goal Swiss man aims for more decisive contributions against struggling opponents.
Castro, who netted the equaliser in Thursday's win over Milan, has scored seven league goals — level with Orsolini — and the forward aims to add to that return in the forthcoming fixture.
Cagliari might take on their round 27 opponents without Giuseppe Ciocci and Kingstone Mutandwa, although both players will be assessed before Sunday's encounter.
Although Roberto Piccoli has netted only six league goals this term, three have been match-winning strikes, with only Inter's Romelu Lukaku (five), Genoa's Andrea Pinamonti, Torino's Che Adams, Atalanta's Mateo Retegui and Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez (all on four) outdoing the Italian forward.
Bologna possible starting lineup:
Skorupski; Calabria, Beukema, Lucumi, Miranda; Freuler, Moro; Orsolini, Pobega, Ndoye; Castro
Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Caprile; Zappa, Mina, Luperto, Augello; Zortea, Adopo, Makoumbou, Deiola, Felici; Piccoli
We say: Bologna 3-1 Cagliari
While Cagliari have fired blanks in consecutive away games, Bologna's failure to keep clean sheets in five of their last six matches on home soil suggests that both teams could score at the Dall'Ara on Sunday.
Nevertheless, Italiano's men are backed to notch maximum points to record a fifth top-flight triumph on home soil, improving their ongoing five-match undefeated sequence in front of their supporters in 2025.
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