Atalanta took all three points against Bologna with a single goal in the closing stages, winning 1-0 at Gewiss Stadium on Sunday evening. The result keeps their perfect record intact after two matches in Serie A's regular season.
Luka Samardzic found the net in the 90th minute plus six, and that proved decisive for a game where chances were scarce. Both sides created little of real value, though Bologna registered more shots and higher expected goals. By then the match had settled into a pattern neither could break.
Atalanta's manager made changes across the second half, bringing on De Ketelaere, Raspadori, Odgaard, Scamacca, Ederson, Holm, Pobega, Kolasinac and Orsolini. Bologna responded with similar adjustments as both coaches looked for something different in the final quarter. Tedesco and Krstovic each picked up yellow cards in that period.
The statistics tell a story of wasted opportunity. Bologna held 58 per cent of the ball and registered 1.29 expected goals, but could only manage three shots on target from thirteen attempts. Atalanta's 0.14 xG with two shots on target was equally modest, yet they held their nerve when it mattered.
After two rounds Atalanta sit sixth with six points from two wins, while Bologna remain fourteenth with nothing to show from their opening fixtures. They had lost to Lazio and Brighton before facing a side that refused to fold. The gap between the two sides in the table now looks wider than the scoreline suggests.
