2024-04-12 00:08:48
We talk about the successful season of the Rossoblu.
İdman.biz presents an article with a link to footballhd.ru.
“Bologna” has not made itself felt for a very long time. So much so that they talk about it. Since Bologna last played in Europe, the club has gone through difficult times, which included a change of ownership and 4 seasons in the Italian second division. But everything is changing. Now the Rossoblu are one of the main sensations of Serie A and are on the verge of a very successful season. Bologna are very close to reaching the group stage of the Champions League for the first time in history.
The current president of the Rossoblu is Canadian businessman Joey Saputo. He has owned the club since 2014. It cannot be said that Bologna has been successful under him all these years, but there are still several positive aspects. Firstly, under Saputo the team returned to the elite division and never relegated from it. Secondly, Bologna got rid of debts and did not get bogged down in new ones, which is already a great achievement for a middling club. The Canadian has rebuilt its staff, hiring quality specialists who do their job well.
One of Saputo’s best decisions was the appointment of Giovanni Sartori as technical director. The experienced functionary has been working in football operations since 1992. He traveled halfway around the world in search of talent for Chievo and Atalanta. His work in Bergamo deserves special attention given how successful Atalanta have become given their financial capabilities. Something similar is happening in Bologna. Sartori helped Saputo overcome his financial problems by seeking the best deals for the club in the transfer market. Largely due to successful sales, Rossoblu remained afloat.
Of course, it is difficult to expect great sporting success if you constantly sell your best players. But in recent years, Bologna has gradually moved away from this. For example, the Rossoblu still retain winger Riccardo Orsolini, who has scored at least 10 goals per season for the second year in a row. Bologna also began to attract well-known players in Europe, such as Remo Freuler and Alexis Saelemaekers, as well as promising young footballers, among whom Joshua Zirkzee and Riccardo Calafiori stand out.
Last season, the Rossoblu finished in 9th place in Serie A, which was the club’s best performance in the Saputo era. And in the current campaign, Bologna is in 4th position with 7 rounds left and has a real chance of qualifying for the Champions League. Although it will not be easy to finish in the top four – Roma are only 3 points behind. The Romans are looking very good and will put serious pressure on Bologna. In addition, Rossoblu has a rather difficult calendar. By the end of the season, the team will have matches against the same Roma, Napoli and Juventus. It won’t be easy, but the chances for historic success remain.
Saputo and Sartori have done a good job, but Bologna’s current success would not have been possible without the current team’s hero and coach, Thiago Motta. Few could have imagined that this union would be so successful. The capabilities of the Rossoblu remained doubtful, despite the good mix of experience and youth. Motta’s appointment looked even more dubious, given that before joining Bologna, the specialist had not achieved much success with either Genoa or Spezia. In the first club he played 10 matches, in the second – 40.
At the beginning of his coaching career, Motta promoted such revolutionary ideas that they did not seem entirely real. The young specialist’s statement about his desire to play in a 2-7-2 formation caused great bewilderment, if only because the goalkeeper in this form is considered a field player. A few years passed, and goalkeepers really began to look more and more like field players. Coaches are increasingly favoring goalkeepers who have good footwork and can complete a good first pass.
Despite all the ridicule, Motta did not give up on his ideas. Now his Bologna actually plays in a 2-7-2 formation. Conditionally, of course, but still. Rossoblu has an active team that moves a lot, the players choose their positions correctly and interact well with each other. The aforementioned forward Joshua Zirkzee and midfielder Lewis Ferguson especially stand out against the general background. They are the main striking force of their team. To date, 22-year-old Zirkzee has scored 11 goals and provided 6 assists in 32 matches. The 24-year-old Ferguson has 32 matches, 5 goals scored and 6 assists.
Motta was finally able to bring his ideas to life, but to do this he needed the right players who might not have been at the club if not for Sartori’s work. So in Bologna everything is interconnected. The coach relies on possession of the ball and its quick return in case of loss. And it bears fruit. Bologna is the second team in Serie A in terms of average percentage of ball possession, which allows the Rossoblu to control the course of many matches. At the same time, the specialist pays great attention to defense – and here too there is a result. Right now Bologna ranks 3rd in the league for the fewest goals conceded.
It would seem that the Rossoblu have finally built a project with great prospects. But there are fears that everything could end quickly. Top clubs are vying for Zirkzee, Ferguson and Calafiori, and these are important players for the team. But the most dangerous thing is that Motta’s contract is expiring. The agreement has not yet been extended, since top clubs are also eyeing the specialist, including Juventus, Chelsea, Manchester United and Barcelona. Players and coaches want to work for top clubs and win – you can’t blame them for that. But it will be sad if such an interesting project turns out to be just a flash in the pan.
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