Dovbyk's stoppage-time leveller gets Bologna their first point of the season, 2-2 with Sassuolo
Josh Doig and Vasilije Adzic put Sassuolo 2-1 up inside the derby, but Roberto Piccoli and a stoppage-time Artem Dovbyk strike rescued a 2-2 draw for Bologna, who had twice come from behind.
Bologna had lost their first two games without scoring a goal. They still nearly lost this one — twice — before a stoppage-time strike turned a third straight defeat into their first point of the season.
Sassuolo led twice in a fiery local derby at the Dall'Ara through Josh Doig and Vasilije Adzic, and Bologna came back twice through Roberto Piccoli and, deep into added time, Artem Dovbyk, to draw 2-2. Bologna manager Domenico Tedesco was sent off for dissent as the game boiled over late on.
Doig opens the scoring, Piccoli levels it
Josh Doig swept a low finish into the far bottom corner from just inside the box on 19' to put Sassuolo ahead. Bologna needed until just after the hour to respond, with Roberto Piccoli equalising on 50' to make it 1-1.
Adzic restores the lead, Dovbyk has the last word
Vasilije Adzic put Sassuolo back in front on 56', and that lead held all the way into stoppage time. Bologna kept pushing and were rewarded in the first minute of added time, when Artem Dovbyk struck to make it 2-2 and send the Dall'Ara into relief rather than despair.
Match facts
| Stat | Bologna | Sassuolo |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 61% | 39% |
| Total shots | 21 | 15 |
| Shots on target | 5 | 6 |
| Corners | 10 | 7 |
| Fouls | 14 | 8 |
- 19' — Josh Doig (Sassuolo)
- 50' — Roberto Piccoli (Bologna)
- 56' — Vasilije Adzic (Sassuolo)
- 90+1' — Artem Dovbyk (Bologna)
- Domenico Tedesco (Bologna manager) sent off for dissent
- Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna — Serie A matchday 3, Sunday 6 September 2026
Different paths since that derby
The point at the Dall'Ara did not turn into momentum for Bologna. They lost 0-1 away at Napoli on matchday 4, then were held 1-1 at home by Torino on matchday 5, stretching the winless run that opened the season to five games — two draws and three defeats, with just three goals scored and six conceded.
Sassuolo kept building instead. They beat Juventus 3-2 at the Mapei Stadium on matchday 4, their best result of the campaign, before a 1-2 defeat away at Monza on matchday 5 took some of the shine off it. Two wins, a draw and two defeats from five games leave them among the division's more inconsistent mid-table sides, with as many goals scored as conceded.
The five rounds so far
- Bologna: lost 0-1 at home to Lazio, lost 0-1 away at Atalanta, drew 2-2 at home with Sassuolo, lost 0-1 away at Napoli, drew 1-1 at home with Torino.
- Sassuolo: lost 1-2 away at Atalanta, won 2-1 at home over Torino, drew 2-2 away at Bologna, won 3-2 at home over Juventus, lost 1-2 away at Monza.
That sequence also makes the Dall'Ara draw the only meeting between the two clubs on record so far this season — and, on Guriball's own archive, the first time Bologna and Sassuolo have faced each other since Guriball started covering Serie A.
Where the table stands now
Five matchdays in, Bologna are 18th on 2 points, inside the relegation zone that starts at that spot, still without a win all season and level with Genoa for the fewest goals scored in Serie A — just three. Sassuolo sit 10th on 7 points, three points off the Europa League place held by Lazio in 5th, with a goal difference of 0 after five games — nine scored, nine conceded. Both sides return after the international break for matchday 6, Bologna still chasing the win that has eluded them since kick-off.
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