Bologna vs Torino: A New Beginning Meets a Side Searching for Stability
What changes when a team begins a new coaching era with almost no time to reshape its identity?
That is the immediate question surrounding Bologna, with Raffaele Palladino taking charge for the first time after the club moved on from Vincenzo Tedesco.
The Rossoblù have collected only one point from their opening four league matches and now face a Torino side with three points.
Torino’s own start has been uneven, but Ignazio Abate has spoken about continued growth ahead of the trip to the Dall’Ara.
The visitors also arrive without Ché Adams after Torino confirmed an adductor injury on Tuesday.
For Bologna, the match is therefore about giving the new coach an immediate competitive platform; for Torino, it is an opportunity to build on the work Abate says is developing.
Palladino has chosen to make an immediate structural change, sending Bologna out in a 3-4-2-1 for his first match in charge.
Skorupski starts behind Helland, Heggem and Theate, with Zortea and Miranda providing the width from the wing-back positions.
Pobega and Ferguson form the central midfield pairing, while Bernardeschi and Cambiaghi operate behind Piccoli.
Torino answer with a 3-5-1-1, using Coco, Ismajli and Cömert as the three defenders and a five-man midfield behind Vlašić.
Simeone leads the attack, with the structure giving Abate an extra central player to contest Bologna’s midfield numbers.
The tactical contrast is especially clear in the spaces behind the forwards, where both teams have chosen a player to connect midfield possession with the striker.
The personnel situation has also influenced the shape of the afternoon, although both clubs have official matchday squads available.
Bologna’s Artem Dovbyk is absent after failing to recover from his muscular problem, while the club’s official squad list does include Riccardo Orsolini among the substitutes.
Torino have confirmed that Adams is unavailable after medical examinations identified a low-grade adductor strain in his left thigh.
Filippo Pellegri and goalkeeper Franco Israel are also not included in Torino’s official 24-man squad for the match.
That leaves Giovanni Simeone as the starting central striker, while Lucas Perri takes the goalkeeping position.
These are concrete selection changes rather than hypothetical fitness concerns, and the confirmed teams remove most of the uncertainty surrounding the pre-match picture.
The pre-match conversation has naturally centred on Palladino’s first competitive decision-making at Bologna and on whether the new system can immediately produce a more stable performance.
Italian reporting noted before kickoff that the coach was considering a move to three at the back, and the official lineup confirms that he has made that change from the start.
Torino’s preparation has instead focused on continuity, with Abate telling the club’s official channel that the team is growing and should continue with confidence.
The Granata have also had to adjust their attacking options following Adams’ injury, making Simeone the confirmed starter in the centre.
Neither side enters with a settled season narrative after only four rounds, so the tactical choices made here carry particular importance for the next phase.
The Dall’Ara will therefore see two teams trying to establish something tangible: Bologna under a new coach, and Torino under a coach asking his group to keep progressing.
🩺 Medical Status and Matchday Absences
Bologna
| Bologna — Injury Report |
|---|
| Out / Ruled Out | Artem Dovbyk | Muscular problem; excluded from the squad |
Torino
| Torino — Injury Report |
|---|
| Long-Term / IR | Filippo Pellegri | Knee injury; unavailable for the match |
| Out / Ruled Out | Ché Adams | Low-grade adductor strain in the left thigh |
| Out / Ruled Out | Franco Israel | Shoulder injury; not selected in the matchday squad |
Torino officially confirmed Adams’ low-grade left-thigh adductor injury on 15 September. The club’s official 24-man squad for Bologna does not include Adams, Pellegri or Israel. Bologna’s official squad list excludes Dovbyk, while Orsolini is included among the substitutes.
📋 The Confirmed Matchday Selections
The official teams have been released, confirming Palladino’s three-man defence and Abate’s 3-5-1-1.
| Bologna — Confirmed Starting XI |
|---|
| Goalkeeper | Łukasz Skorupski | Starting goalkeeper |
| Defence | Eivind Helland | Right side of the back three |
| Defence | Torbjørn Heggem | Central defender |
| Defence | Arthur Theate | Left side of the back three |
| Midfield | Nadir Zortea | Right wing-back |
| Midfield | Tommaso Pobega | Central midfield |
| Midfield | Lewis Ferguson | Central midfield |
| Midfield | Juan Miranda | Left wing-back |
| Attack | Federico Bernardeschi | Advanced attacking role |
| Attack | Nicolò Cambiaghi | Advanced attacking role |
| Attack | Roberto Piccoli | Centre-forward |
| Torino — Confirmed Starting XI |
|---|
| Goalkeeper | Lucas Perri | Starting goalkeeper |
| Defence | Saúl Coco | Right side of the back three |
| Defence | Arijan Ismajli | Central defender |
| Defence | Emil Audero Cömert | Left side of the back three |
| Midfield | Niccolò Fortini | Right wing-back |
| Midfield | Dávid Bragança | Central midfield |
| Midfield | Rolando Mandragora | Central midfield |
| Midfield | Kian Fitz-Jim | Central midfield |
| Midfield | Alessio Cacciamani | Left wing-back |
| Attack | Nikola Vlašić | Supporting attacking role |
| Attack | Giovanni Simeone | Centre-forward |
⭐ The Players Defining the Two Game Plans
| Bologna — Key Personnel |
|---|
| Midfield | Lewis Ferguson | Central midfield starter |
| Attack | Federico Bernardeschi | Advanced attacking role |
| Attack | Roberto Piccoli | Starting centre-forward |
| Torino — Key Personnel |
|---|
| Attack | Giovanni Simeone | Starting striker following Adams’ absence |
| Attack | Nikola Vlašić | Attacking link behind Simeone |
| Midfield | Rolando Mandragora | Central midfield starter |
🗞️ What the Build-Up Has Focused On
- Bologna’s first match under Raffaele Palladino has been the central storyline, with the new coach opting for a three-man defence in the confirmed lineup.
- Palladino’s selection includes Bernardeschi and Cambiaghi behind Piccoli, while Dovbyk is unavailable.
- Torino coach Ignazio Abate spoke before the match about the team’s growth and the need to continue with confidence.
- Torino’s attack has been reshaped by Adams’ injury, with Simeone confirmed as the central forward and Vlašić behind him.
- The official squads show no suspensions for the match, while the confirmed lineups settle the main selection questions before kickoff.
🔄 Variation Rule: Let the New Coaching System Lead the Preview
This preview deliberately places the tactical change ahead of the conventional injury-first structure. The central editorial thread is Palladino’s immediate switch to a 3-4-2-1 and how Bologna’s two attacking midfielders will interact with Torino’s five-man midfield. The injury information remains separated into a factual availability section, while the confirmed lineups establish the actual matchday personnel without speculation.
