Bologna vs Empoli

Bologna, which is still waiting for their first victory of the Serie A season, will want to start strong when they host Empoli at Stadio Dall'Ara on Saturday.

Last Saturday, the Rossoblu suffered a crushing defeat, while their Tuscan rivals achieved an incredible victory in Rome.

Bologna, the surprise gift of the previous season who performed far above their weight under former manager Thiago Motta, has not been able to sustain that level of play since coming back from the summer break in Serie A.

Following a dismal stalemate against Udinese at home on the opening day, the Rossoblu traveled to Napoli last week in an attempt to take advantage of their hosts' continuing problems.

Bologna aim to secure their first-ever three consecutive top-flight victories over Empoli, having dominated the Tuscan team last season.

Empoli not only failed to score any points from their two matches against Bologna in the 2023-24 season but also couldn't find the net in either game, whether at home or away.

The Azzurri faced a challenging season, narrowly avoiding relegation thanks to a dramatic final-day turn of events. However, new coach Roberto D'Aversa has had a much more promising start to the current season.

Despite some luck on their side—Roma hitting the woodwork three times and missing several opportunities—Empoli pulled off a surprising 2-1 win last weekend, delivering an unexpected away victory at Stadio Olimpico.

Goals from Emmanuel Gyasi and loan striker Lorenzo Colombo secured the three points, adding to the single point earned from a draw with Monza on the opening day.

Although still serving a touchline ban due to an incident that cut short his time at Lecce, D'Aversa had previously guided Empoli to a 4-1 Coppa Italia victory over Catanzaro. He now hopes to help the team remain unbeaten through their first three Serie A matches for only the second time in their history.