Aaron Hickey scored his debut Serie A goal and Genoa snatched a draw with a late penalty, but there was almost more last-gasp drama for Bologna.
It turned into a thrilling match at the Stadio Dall’Ara in the second half, as Hickey became the first Scottish player since 1986 to find the net in the Italian top flight.
Mattia Destro equalised against his former club with a glancing header, denied a second only by a spectacular Lukasz Skorupski reaction save.
Zinho Vanheusden brought down Nicola Sansone for the Marko Arnautovic penalty, but moments later Domenico Criscito converted a spot-kick at the other end.
Skorupski out-did himself with the final move of the game, a desperate reaction save on Roberto Soriano after Andreas Skov-Olsen hit the bar.