Round 10 of Serie A begins on Saturday, with most teams finally having found their natural flow. Inter – Bologna is a match between a team flirting with greatness and one fighting mediocrity. Nonetheless, it’s a meeting that Bologna did win, against most expectations, last time around.
Here’s what’s at stake, who’s playing, who’s not, and what’s likely to happen.
Inter – Bologna
Yes, things aren’t quite as grim for Bologna as we’ve, perhaps, been accustomed. The Rossoblu have won their previous two Serie A outings and sit dead smack in mid-table. However, predictably, tempers have been flaring just the same. Recently, manager Sinisa Mihajlovic, experimented with a 3-4-1-2 formation in training, only to then announce that this was merely a ploy to catch a mole within his players’ ranks. Defeat to Inter could further heat things up.
While the match between Inter and Bologna is a traditional encounter, it’s mostly been a one-sided affair. In Serie A, the Nerazzurri have won 72 games out of the 150 that have been played. Bologna triumphed on 43 occasions, but they’ll be just as happy settling with a draw this time around.
Recent Form – Inter
Recent form notwithstanding, Inter has seen a resurgence in recent years. They’ve been the biggest thorn in seemingly perpetual champions Juventus’ side. Last season they missed the Scudetto by the whisker of a point. There’s a whiff of the scent of revenge this year around, as Antonio Conte has looked to improve his squad in almost all departments.
Inter’s form, nevertheless, has been shaky. They’ve won their previous two Serie A games and defeated Borussia Mönchengladbach in the Champions League. However, their early-season also saw them lose twice to Real Madrid. More dramatically, they’ve also squandered points to Parma, Atalanta, and to league leaders Milan.
It’s a team that regardless of the quality of its defensive players (Ranocchia, Barella, Bastoni, Handanovic) has rarely kept a clean sheet. Conte’s saving grace has been that other important teams have been as inconsistent as Inter, but wasting points on Saturday could make or break their campaign.
Team News and Predicted Lineups – Inter
Expect Conte to use his famous 3-5-2 formation. This is a manager known for caring less about the star-power of his players and more about having his tactics obeyed. Andrea Pinamonti and Radja Nainggolan are the only players unavailable, but this should have little impact on Inter’s performance. Aleksandar Kolarov recently tested negative for Covid-19, but it’s doubtful he’ll start. Nicolò Barella is also anticipated to be rested.
Despite recent victories, confidence is not exactly booming in the Nerazzurri dressing room. They narrowly avoided an embarrassment against Gladbach this week, with Romelu Lukaku, once again, their savior.
Expected Starting XI (3-5-2): Handanovic; D’Ambrosio, de Vrij, Bastoni; Hakimi, Gagliardini, Brozovic, Vidal, Perisic; Sanchez, Lukaku
Unavailable: Andrea Pinamonti and Radja Nainggolan
Recent Form – Bologna
Bologna are a much-beloved Italian club, but one that has struggled in recent years. Their manager is the feisty Sinisa Mihajlovic. He’s been keeping the boat steady. Last year they finished in 10th place, surprisingly. This year, just as unexpectedly, they occupy the same position in the standings.
Bologna won their last two Serie A games. They usually earn points against lower-tier opponents, but even against the league’s better sides, they’ve managed to put up a fight. Lazio, Napoli, and Milan all struggled to earn the three points against Mihajlovic’s side.
Team News and Predicted Lineups – Bologna
As eluded to earlier, the Serbian manager, both as he did as a player and as a manager, thrives under conflict. This week he promised to snuff out a potential spy hiding in his team’s midst. He also challenged Gary Medel and Nicola Sansone to rise up to the challenge of playing against Inter.
Riccardo Orsolini will be a heavy loss in the upcoming fixture. He’s scored eight goals and assisted six this season. However, Bologna will rely heavily on the experience of players like Rodrigo Palacio or Lorenzo De Silvestri in trying to, at least, grab a point from this match.
Expected Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Skorupski; De Silvestri, Danilo, Tomiyasu, Hickey; Svanberg, Schouten; Sansone, Soriano, Barrow; Palacio
Unavailable: Skov Olsen, Dijks, Orsolini, Santander
Inter vs Bologna – Previous Meetings
As discussed earlier, Inter is, historically, the clear winner in this battle against Bologna. The situation has not been as clear in recent years though. Inter narrowly grabbed the three points in November 2019 with Romelu Lukaku scoring a double.
Back in the summer of 2020, Conte’s men lost 2-1 in a match they mostly dominated. Lukaku provided the consolation goal. It’s easy to assume who the Nerazzurri will be leaning on this time around.
Conclusion
It’s easy to frame this as a David vs. Goliath affair, but, frankly, given Inter’s form, this could be a more disputed affair than reputation would suggest. Mihajlovic has turned Bologna into a nasty, hard-fighting little outfit that’s determined to maintain their mid-table position.
Inter are a team that has proven themselves last year. They have a great manager and a really good squad. This is, maybe, the problem. The team is burdened by weighty expectations and will need to keep their cool to grab a win here.
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