Lazio vs Bologna

Saturday’s Serie A action kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico as Lazio aim to bounce back from a horror midweek against mid-table Bologna.

Lazio failed to build on an overwhelming 3-0 win away to Fiorentina last time out, suffering an embarrassing 4-0 defeat at the hands of AC Milan in midweek Coppa Italia action. However, since a 2-1 loss at table-topping Inter Milan in their inaugural Serie A fixture of 2022, ‘I Biancocelesti’ have gone three consecutive league matches without conceding (W2, D1) for the first time since 2015. With just Inter (54) netting more Serie A goals than Lazio (49) so far this season, Maurizio Sarri’s side will feel confident about registering their third successive H2H home victory in Italy’s top-flight. By extension, the hosts have not lost any of their last eight Serie A meetings with Bologna on home turf (W5, D3), scoring an average of 2.25 goals per match. Notably, Lazio have scored more Serie A second-half goals at home (17) than any other side this term.

By contrast, travelling Bologna head into proceedings on the back of a four-match winless streak in Serie A (D1, L3), failing to get on the scoresheet in two of their last three league outings. Sinisa Mihajlovic’s men have succumbed to back-to-back 2-1 defeats on the road and face the risk of losing three away league games in a row for the first time since October 2020. Conceding first could seal Bologna’s fate here, as they’ve lost all five Serie A matches on the road after falling behind this season. It could sound a bit surprising, though, considering that ‘I Rossoblu’ have recorded a clear majority (69%) of their Serie A away goals scored this season in the second half of play (9/13).