Thiago Motta leaves Bologna with a defeat, as Genoa were simply more motivated and fired up this evening with Ruslan Malinovskyi and Vitinha goals.
The Grifone saw off the season with a revamped squad, missing only Koni De Winter, while this was the final game for Thiago Motta on the Bologna bench and third was still possible. Joshua Zirkzee was only fit for the bench, with Lewis Ferguson a long-term absentee.
See how it unfolded on the Liveblog.
The hosts started with considerably more aggression and took a deserved lead after 13 minutes when Aaron Martin got down the left and pulled back from the by-line for Ruslan Malinovskyi to side-foot first-time into the far bottom corner from just inside the penalty area.
Poetry in motion đȘ
It's a đ°đšđ§đđđ«đđźđ„ team goal as Genoa don't waste any time taking the lead đȘ
đș @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/MNgL8qswXV
â Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) May 24, 2024
Vitinha saw a shot charged down after hesitating to make the most of a Jhon Lucumi error, but Giovanni Fabbian came so close to an equaliser as his header bounced on the ground and off the base of the far post.
Charalampos Lykogiannis saw an effort charged down and Fabbian turned the rebound wide, then Leali had to smother a Fabbian daisy-cutter from the edge of the box.
However, Genoa doubled their advantage when Bologna lost the ball in midfield with sloppy passing and Gudmundsson sent Vitinha down the right, beating the on-rushing goalkeeper with a dinked finish.
Karlsson made a crucial interception to prevent Gudmundsson sending Djed Spence clear on goal.
It really shouldâve been 3-0 in stoppages when Caleb Ekuban saw his shot parried by the third goalkeeper into the path of Gudmundsson, who somehow blasted the rebound over from 12 yards.
Genoa 2-0 Bologna
Malinovskyi 13 (G), Vitinha 59 (G)
Player statistic
| Ruslan Malinovskyi (Assist: AarĂłn MartĂn) |
 |
13' | Â | Â |
| Â | Â | 56' |  |
Oussama El Azzouzi |
| Vitinha (Assist: Albert Gudmundsson) |
|
59' | Â | Â |
| Â | Â | 64' | |
Santiago Castro |
| Nicola Leali | |
67' | Â | Â |
Match statistic
Now, Atalanta, please, don’t win both remained matches, for Serie A and Roma. No need to lose, because Bologna have better H2H against Atalanta. I know, maybe no quality with 6 teams in UCL, but it’s for prestidge. Imagine England and Spain with 4 teams and Italy with 6. Sure City or Madrid wins again, but still I feel it’s big deal to have 6 clubs in Champions League.