Udinese take on Bologna at Bluenergy Stadium on Saturday in what will be the 81st Serie A meeting between these two sides. Previous encounters have been largely even, with 26 Udinese wins, 26 draws and 28 Bologna victories. Almost a third of those draws have come in the last 11 matches.
Udinese have had the better of things in Udine, winning 21 and losing 10 on home soil in all competitions, with 17 draws. Bologna have failed to score in their last two visits to Bluenergy Stadium.
This will be the third meeting between Kosta Runjaic and Vincenzo Italiano. Our coach made his Serie A debut against Bologna and Italiano and is now set for his 50th match in the top flight. Both games last season ended in a draw: 1-1 and 0-0.
In the first 11 matches of the season, Udinese have played just two balls fewer in the area than Bologna (195 vs 197) and had just three fewer shots on goal (41 vs 44). The xG difference is a mere 1.5.
Runjaic's side have seen the second-highest number of attempts hit the woodwork (six) in Serie A and, like Bologna, are strong in duels: Udinese rank seventh with 428 duels won, while Bologna are fourth with 447.
Two more goals for Nicolo Zaniolo will see him reach the 20-goal milestone in Serie A. This season he has already notched three (all in the last five games), which is as many as he managed in his previous 49 outings in the Italian top flight. Only on two occasions has he scored more over the course of a season: in 2018/19 and 2019/20.
Arthur Atta continues to lead the way for most successful dribbles in Serie A, with 29, the same number as AC Milan's Alexis Saelemaekers.