Cagliari 0-2 Bologna: Nicolò Casale header and a Bernardeschi penalty end a four-match wait
A Nicolò Casale header and a Federico Bernardeschi penalty gave Bologna a 2-0 win at Cagliari, their first victory in four Serie A matches, while the hosts finished with three players booked and a season-high 25 fouls.
Bologna had gone three matches without a win before this trip to Sardinia, and it took until the 57th minute for them to break the deadlock. Nicolò Casale headed in a Juan Miranda cross to put the visitors ahead, and Federico Bernardeschi added a penalty in the 80th minute to make it 2-0 — a result that ended Bologna's wait for a win and left Cagliari with three players booked in a game they finished chasing shadows.
A game that got away from the hosts
Cagliari actually had the better of the possession, with 57% of the ball to Bologna's 43%, but almost none of it turned into danger — a single shot on target all afternoon against Bologna's five. What they did generate was fouls: 25 of them, against 13 from the visitors, with Zé Pedro, Roberto Gagliardini and Alessandro Deiola all booked as the game grew increasingly stretched. Bernardeschi, booked himself in the 32nd minute, was the one player on the pitch to turn Cagliari's frustration into a cold finish from the spot.
Match facts
- 57' — GOAL: Nicolò Casale (Bologna), assisted by Juan Miranda
- 80' — GOAL (penalty): Federico Bernardeschi (Bologna)
- 32' — Federico Bernardeschi (Bologna) booked
- 38' — Zé Pedro (Cagliari) booked
- 55' — Roberto Gagliardini (Cagliari) booked
- 77' — Alessandro Deiola (Cagliari) booked
| Stat | Cagliari | Bologna |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 57.1% | 42.9% |
| Shots on target | 1 | 5 |
| Corners | 1 | 6 |
| Passes completed | 435 (85%) | 319 (84%) |
| Fouls | 25 | 13 |
| Offsides | 2 | 1 |
| Yellow cards | 3 | 1 |
Line-ups
- Cagliari (4-3-2-1): Elia Caprile, Juan Rodríguez, Alessandro Deiola, Adam Obert, Zé Pedro, Harry Winks, Michel Adopo, Alessandro Romano, Paul Mendy, Daniel Maldini, Yanis Massolin. Came on: Alieu Fadera, Giuseppe Aurelio, Roberto Gagliardini, Kevin Carlos, Yukinari Sugawara.
- Bologna (3-4-3): Lukasz Skorupski, Nicolò Casale, Arthur Theate, Matteo Darmian, Tommaso Pobega, Lewis Ferguson, Juan Miranda, Nadir Zortea, Jens Odgaard, Nicolò Cambiaghi, Federico Bernardeschi. Came on: Rahim Alhassane, Martin Vitík, Marco Libra, Mikel Amondarain, Samuel Mbangula.
Opposite trajectories
Cagliari's last five Serie A games before this had read W W W D L — three straight wins followed by a draw with Juventus and a heavy 0-4 defeat at Monza — and this second loss in a row now makes it back-to-back defeats for the first time all season. Bologna's run had been D L D W L, with their only win in that stretch a 2-1 trip to Lecce; this was their first win in four matches and only their second away win of the campaign.
What's next
Cagliari drop to 9th on 13 points, overtaken by Torino on goal difference, while Bologna climb to 14th on 8 points — level with Sassuolo but still above only Monza, Genoa and the bottom four in a congested middle of the table.
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