Bologna vs AS Roma 22/09/19

22 September 2019

After thrashing Istanbul Basaksehir 4-0 in the Europa League curtain-raiser, AS Roma return to their Serie A (SA) commitments as they travel to the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara to take on the in-form Bologna side.

After an unfortunate 1-1 away draw with Hellas Verona in the matchday one, the hosts have secured back-to-back league wins over SPAL and Brescia, both of which have come by a narrow one-goal margin. Just like they did in the final stage of the last season, the ‘Greyhounds’ move up a gear in the second half, with four of six SA goals they’ve scored this term arriving after the break. Outstandingly, the Red and Blues have racked up an eight-game SA home winning run ahead of this fixture, beating their rivals to nil on half of those occasions (4). Additionally, a free-scoring Bologna have netted a total of 21 goals across those games, scoring 3+ match goals five times in the process.

On the other hand, the visitors have registered their first league win under Paulo Fonseca last time out by beating Sassuolo 4-2 at home. Before that, the ‘Giallorossi’ have played out back-to-back league draws with Genoa and Lazio, both of which have seen both teams score. Fonseca’s attacking-minded philosophy has seen Roma score eight SA goals already, with only Napoli (9) netting more than them. But, they are still looking to put an end to their four-game SA away winless run (D4), with three of those draws ending with the same 1-1 scoreline. A recent SA road record against Bologna (W1, D2, L1) suggests that it’s going to be a daunting prospect for Roma to walk away with three points though.