Serie A

Bologna vs. Lazio: Tedesco and Gattuso looking for instant wins

Penultimate clash on the opening matchday of the Serie A, Bologna and Lazio looking for the three points.

Winning to make the best possible start: that is the shared objective of Domenico Tedesco and Gennaro Gattuso as they make their league debuts with their respective new teams. Lazio are the team that have drawn the most matches on the opening matchday of a Serie A season (29), level with Roma, while Bologna have won just two of their last 16 opening-day fixtures, in the 2021/22 season and 2016/17 season.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

There have been 81 official meetings between the two sides in Emilia: 44 Bologna wins (most recent 5-0, Serie A 2024/25), 20 draws (most recent 1-1, Coppa Italia 2025/26, with Lazio advancing on penalties) and 17 Lazio wins (most recent 2-0, Serie A 2025/26).

Bologna-Lazio will be played on the opening matchday of Serie A for the 7th time in history: 3 Lazio wins (1929, 2015 and 2022/23), 1 draw (1959/60) and 2 Bologna wins (1960/61 and 1996/97). The first meeting dates back to 1929, on the inaugural matchday of the first Serie A season played as a single round-robin league, with Lazio winning 3-0 in Rome.

DID YOU KNOW?

Bologna have finished in the top half of the table for 4 consecutive seasons: a feat the Emilia-based club had not achieved since the 1960s.

Lazio eliminated in the Coppa Italia Round of 32: in their first official match of the season, they were beaten 2-0 by Mantova at the Olimpico, with goals from Ruocco and Cajazzo. Alongside Lecce, Lazio are one of two Serie A sides already out of the competition.

Lazio have failed to qualify for European competitions for 2 consecutive seasons: this had not happened to the Biancocelesti since the early 1990s.

COACHES and PLAYERS

Domenico Tedesco and Gennaro Gattuso will meet for the first time in an official match: the two coaches, both from the province of Cosenza, have never faced each other in their careers.

Domenico Tedesco is making his Serie A debut: Amorim (Milan), Abate (Torino) and Aquilani (Sassuolo) are also making their debut in Italy’s top flight.

Gennaro Gattuso returns to a Serie A dugout after more than 5 years: his last match was on 23 May 2021, Napoli-Verona 1-1.

DISCIPLINE

Suspended: none

Cautioned: none

REFEREE

MARESCA F. (CECCONI - BIANCHINI) IV: FELICIANI VAR: DI PAOLO AVAR: MASSIMI

UPCOMING MATCHES

Atalanta-Bologna (31/8, 20.45)

Lazio-Genoa (30/8, 20.45)

(Photo Getty Images)