Bologna – Pisa

Bologna and Pisa will exchange goals

Bologna finds itself in a challenging schedule. Starting from September 20, the 'rossoblu' have played four matches. The team combines domestic league matches with European cups, and judging by the results, it's not going well for them. On Thursday, the 'Felsinei' hosted Freiburg. Italiano's charges scored first but generally did not look great. The team struggled in the second half and understandably conceded an equaliser. The match in the last round also ended in a draw. The 'Felsinei' faced Lecce and conceded to Koulibaly already in the 13th minute. The 'Wolves' could have doubled their advantage immediately but hit the crossbar instead. However, thanks to a penalty, Italiano's team managed to equalise in the match. In the second half, the 'rossoblu' took the lead, but they conceded a late, yet justified goal. It should be noted that the 'rossoblu' have scored in every home match of this season. Pisa ended a four-match losing streak. The start for Alberto Gilardino's team has not been the easiest. After a sensational draw with Atalanta, the 'Torri' lost to Roma (0:1), Udinese (0:1), Napoli (3:2), and Torino in the Italian Cup. In the last round, the team hosted Fiorentina. Nzola had a magnificent chance as early as the 13th minute of the match. After a cross, the player directed the ball with a header onto the crossbar of David de Gea's goal. The 'Torri' continued to attack dangerously, and this paid off in the 71st minute. With a stunning shot, Maistre hit the 'Lily' net. Unfortunately for the hosts, the goal was disallowed after VAR intervention. Alberto Gilardino's charges did not stop and had several decent chances. In one of them, Cuadrado hit the post of the Florentines' goal. A deserved draw, but with a touch of disappointment. The hosts clearly deserved more. Pisa has a significant shortfall in terms of the xG metric. According to it, the 'Torri' should have scored 3.07 goals more. This is quite interesting, considering the kind of opponents the team faced at the start of the championship. At the same time, the team conceded six goals but still has a shortfall in the xGA metric. Italiano will definitely rotate the squad, but his team will still be the favourites in the match. On the other hand, Pisa should be scoring, as their misfortune often hinders them. Should we expect zeros on the scoreboard from such a match? No.