Football Season Guide

Bologna made it back to Serie A in 2015. Having been taken over by Americans, the hope was that the team would begin to challenge further up the table. The reality is that this has remained a distant dream with the club either fighting survival, or enduring campaigns of little note. In the last two seasons with the highly-ambitious Mihajlovic in charge they have ended up in 12th place twice. The Serbian coach has continually asked for more investment in the past, but this summer, the feeling is that something might have changed. Bologna have released veterans like Palacio, Danilo, Da Costa and Poli, all over their 30, meanwhile the rejuvenation of the squad, started in the last couple of years has continued. Mihajlovic always complained about the lack of a striker, with Barrow, a winger, often taking up that role. 2 forwards have come in. The experienced Arnautovic has arrived from China having impressed during the 2020 UEFA European Championship. He is joined by the young Van Hooijdonk from NAC Breda, where he scored 23 goals in two seasons. Bologna also tried to strengthen a defence that conceded 65 goals in the last campaign. Soumaoro's loan was made permanent while Bonifazi was acquired from SPAL for a conspicuous sum of money after a positive season at Udinese. The two should thus form the new pair in the heart of the defence. Last season, due to injuries, Bologna faced some full-back problems and so they could still be looking for one more alternative to Hickey and Tomiyasu, (who can also act as centre-backs) for the bench. With Orsolini attracting bigger clubs' attention, Skov Olsen could become a regular on the right wing, while young Vignato would be given more responsibilities. Some alternatives in the middle of the park could also be needed.