Serie A, Bologna-Inter 1-0: Orsolini punishes the Nerazzurri

Inter falls again in Bologna and brakes in the Champions League area. In the lunch match of the 24th day of Serie A, the team of Inzaghi loses 1-0 against Thiago Motta’s men and stay within range of Roma and Milan a -18 from Naples. At Dall’Ara it is the hosts who play the game. In the first half Orsato cancels a goal by Barrow for an irregular position of Dominguez and a right in turn of Soriano hits the crossbar. Then he thinks about it in the second half Orsolini (76′) to score the goal that unlocks the match and decides the match. Bologna seventh with 35 points.

THE MATCH

Bologna still do for Inter. Like last season, the Nerazzurri still stick at Dall’Ara and collect a heavy stoppage. In one fell swoop Inzaghi slips to -18 from Naples and puts second place at risk. A very bitter knockout not only for the standings, but also because it confirms the Nerazzurri’s difficulties with the small and medium-sized teams. Difficulties more mental and approach to the race than technical. With the defeat against Bologna, in this 2023 the points left on the street by Inter against teams not in the first tier were 10. Too many not only to keep up with the possessed pace of Napoli, but also to secure second place. Different speech instead for Bologna, which continues to play well, earn points and move up the standings with Europe in their sights. Merit of Thaigo Motta, capable of giving a precise identity to the rossoblùs and of enhancing some singles by focusing on the quality and rhythm of the interpreters. Orsolini above all, the real protagonist of this part of the season and the image man of the European dream in Bologna.

With an eye on the standings close to the area valid for Europe and Arnautovic, Sansone and Zirkzee still in the pits, Thiago Motta confirms the 4-2-3-1 formation at Dall’Ara and places Barrow again in the center of the attack with Orsolini , Ferguson and Soriano in support between the lines. Without Skriniar and Dimarco, Inzaghi instead leaves Barella on the bench and shows up in Bologna with De Vrij and Darmian in defense, Dumfries and Gosens on the outside, Brozovic in the control room and Lukaku and Lautaro up front. With a lot of wind and the pitch weighed down by the rain, the match was marked by many measurement errors and wrong controls at the start. Then Bologna changed pace and after an outing by Skorupski on Gosens they maneuvered well in range, raised their center of gravity and attacked with many men. Barrow scores with his left foot, but Dominguez is in an irregular position in front of Onana and Orsato cancels everything after reviewing the images on the sidelines. An episode that makes the nerazzurri tremble and ignites the match. Short and compact, Thiago Motta’s team controlled possession, closed the spaces well and pushed with Ferguson, Posch and Orsolini. Cambiaso tested Onana’s reflexes and on the rebound a right-footed shot from Soriano hit the crossbar. Opportunities that expose the Nerazzurri’s difficulties in maneuvering in the midfield and serving the strikers in depth. With Lautaro and Lukaku closely marked and Brozovic and Calhanoglu stamping each other’s feet a bit, it’s up to Mkhitaryan to try and kick from the edge, but his left foot goes wide. Same fate for a Martinez goring. Attempts that train the pressure a bit, but that don’t change the inertia of the match. Aggressive on second balls, Bologna defend well, set up with quality and easily reach the frontline. Onana repels a left foot from Cambiaso, then Dominguez fails to make a good restart and the first half ends with a free-kick from Orsolini just over.

The second half began with the entry of Acerbi in place of the booked De Vrij and with a dangerous action by Gosens ended badly by Calhanoglu. Flash that opens up the spaces, lengthens the teams and changes the match a bit. Always orderly in the middle of the field and master of possession, Thiago Motta’s team attacks with many men and pushes on the outside. Inter, on the other hand, relies only on recovering the ball and on quick vertical plays. On the one hand Soriano and Dominguez do not hit the big target after a good play by Orsolini. On the other hand, Skorupski blocks a left foot from Lukaku after a mistake by Lucumì. In search of drive and quality, Inzaghi removes Mkhitaryan, Lukaku and Dumfries and brings in Barella, Dzeko and D’Ambrosio. And the nerazzurri immediately pack a dangerous opportunity with the Bosnian. But it’s just a flash in the pan. In fact, immediately after Onana blocks a diagonal from Barrow and Orsolini who unlocks the match with a paw that scores the match. Despite the Nerazzurri’s forcing, Thiago Motta sealed the result with substitutions in the final stages and the match ended with a central shot by Gosens that was rejected by Skorupski. Inter crashes again at Dall’Ara and brakes. Bologna instead dreams of Europe.

REPORT CARDS
Orsolini 7: runs, tears and scores. He alternates good plays in the wing and central cuts that put the Nerazzurri defense in difficulty. He decides the match by signing the seventh goal of the season

Ferguson 6,5: dynamism and quality between the lines. Good at always placing himself in the right place and supporting the maneuver by often being found free from his teammates and ready to push

Barrow 6: it acts in the middle of the attack giving a point of reference to make the team rise and start the vertical maneuver. He scores with his left foot, but Orsato cancels everything due to an irregular position by Dominguez with the help of the Var

Cambiaso 6.5: covers and pushes with leg and personality. Cancel Dumfries and engage Onana with a pair of dangerous conclusions

Dumfries 5: on his side Cambiaso has another step and is unable to push and accelerate. Struggle in cover, he suffers from Soriano’s presence and doesn’t aim for the man. He also gets a yellow card

Brozovic 5.5: in the first half hour he stepped on his toes a bit with Calhanoglu and in the midfield Inter was in trouble. When the Turkish player advances a little, the field of action finds pace and position, but still fails to express himself on his standards

Luke 5: Inter serves the attackers little and badly and is unable to free themselves from Sosa’s marking and to assert their physique. Replaced around the hour of the game by Dzeko

THE TABLE
BOLOGNA-INTER 1-0
Bologna (4-2-3-1): Skorupski 6.5; Posch 6.5, Sosa 6.5, Lucumì 6, Cambiaso 6.5; Schouten 6.5 (42′ st Medel sv), Dominguez 6.5; Orsolini 7 (42′ st Aebischer sv), Ferguson 6.5 (38′ st Moro sv), Soriano 6 (38′ st Kyriakopoulos sv); Barrow 6.5 (42′ st Raimondo sv).

A disp.: Bardi, Ravaglia, Soumaoro, Lykogiannis, Wip, De Silvestri.
All.: Thiago Motta 7

Inter (3-5-2): Onana 6; Darmian 5,5, De Vrij 5 (1′ st Acerbi 6), Bastoni 5,5; Dumfries 5 (23′ st D’Ambrosio 5,5), Mkhitaryan 5,5 (18′ st Barella 5,5), Brozovic 5,5 (38′ st Carboni sv), Calhanoglu 6, Gosens 6; Lukaku 5 (18′ st Dzeko 6), Lautaro Martinez 5,5.

A disp.: Handanovic, Cordaz, Gagliardini, Bellanova, Asllani, Zanotti.
All.: Inzaghi 5

Referee: bear

Scorers: 31st Orsolini (B)

Ammonites: Dominguez (B);
De Vrij, Dumfries (I)

Expelled: –

THE STATISTICS

Bologna have won four of their last five Serie A games (L1), three of them by just a one-goal margin.

Inter have failed to find the net in two away matches in a row in Serie A for the first time since April 2018 (three on that occasion).

Bologna have won two games in a row against Inter in Serie A at the Dall’Ara for the first time since 1999.

Riccardo Orsolini has been involved in 10 goals in a Serie A season for the fourth time with a Bologna shirt (seven goals and three assists this league).

Riccardo Orsolini has been involved in six goals in his last five Serie A appearances (four goals and two assists), as many involvements as in his previous 20 league games.

Inter have not scored a single goal with their last 40 away shots in Serie A.

Inter have conceded at least nine shots in a Serie A first half for only the second time this season, after Milan-Inter on 3 September last (13).

Edin Dzeko is among nine strikers who played at least 500 games in Europe’s big five leagues in the 2000s, alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Fabio Quagliarella, Karim Benzema, Alberto Gilardino, Jimmy Briand, Fernando Torres and Kevin Gameiro.