The Serie A Round 17 match between Bologna and Sassuolo will take place on 28 December at the Renato Dall'Ara Stadium. Bologna – Sassuolo: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Bologna
Vincenzo Italiano's side missed the previous round due to their participation in the Italian Super Cup, and in their last league outing they lost at home to Juventus (0-1). That defeat was only their second in 12 Serie A matches (6 wins, 4 draws). In 13 of 15 league games this season Bologna have conceded no more than one goal. The club sit sixth in the table with 25 points and are the third-highest scorers in the division with 23 goals.
- The team are unbeaten in 15 of their last 18 home Serie A matches (11 wins, 4 draws).
- Bologna have conceded more than one goal at home in only 2 of their last 14 league matches.
- The hosts scored no more than one goal in 8 of their last 11 home Serie A games.
Predicted lineup for Bologna (4-5-1)*
Federico Ravaglia – Juan Miranda, Torbjørn Heggem, John Lucumi, Nadir Zortea – Nicolo Cambiaghi, Nicola Moro, Lewis Ferguson, Tommaso Pobega, Riccardo Orsolini – Teys Dallinga.
Defender Nicolo Casale, midfielder Remo Freuler and forward Federico Bernardeschi will miss the game through injury. Defender Torbjørn Heggem is suspended.
Sassuolo
Fabio Grosso's side were beaten 0-1 at home by Torino in the last round. That was only their fourth defeat in 12 league matches (5 wins, 3 draws). Sassuolo failed to score for only the second time in their previous eight Serie A games. The club sit 10th with 21 points.
- Sassuolo are unbeaten in 5 of their last 6 away league matches (3 wins, 2 draws).
- The visitors have scored in 10 of their last 12 away Serie A fixtures.
- At least three goals were scored in 6 of Sassuolo's last 8 league matches.
Predicted lineup for Sassuolo (4-3-3)*
Arijanet Muric – Tarik Muharemovic, Josh Doig, Jay Idzes, Sebastian Walukiewicz – Nemanja Matic, Aster Vranckx, Ismaël Koné – Christian Volpato, Walid Cheddira, Armand Lauriente.
Forwards Domenico Berardi and Laurs Skjellerup are sidelined with injuries. Defender Vojo Kulibaly has departed for the Africa Cup of Nations.
Referee
Gianluca Sacchi (Italy)
Matches – 14 (Serie A, 2024/25–2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 43;
Average yellow cards per match – 3.1;
Red cards shown – 2;
Average fouls per match – 25;
Penalties – 14%.
Match prediction: Bologna vs Sassuolo
Bologna play with attacking intent at home and rarely struggle to break down opponents. In their last 22 home Serie A matches the side have failed to score only twice and found the net at least twice on 12 occasions. That said, they were vulnerable in their two most recent home league games, conceding four goals in total to Juventus and Cremonese.
Sassuolo are productive in possession and remain a regular threat on the road. In their last 12 away Serie A fixtures the visitors failed to score on just two occasions, finding the net against the likes of Inter, Milan, Atalanta and Lazio. Notably, both teams scored in 7 of the last 8 head-to-head league meetings at Bologna's ground.
Given those trends, my prediction: Both teams to score – Yes
* For each team the starting XI is from their previous match in this competition.
