Bologna FC 1909 snatched a dramatic 1-0 Serie A victory over Udinese Calcio at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, with Federico Bernardeschi converting a contentious late penalty to seal successive league wins for the first time since November.
The contest began as a cagey mid-table affair, with clear-cut chances at a premium in the opening exchanges. Bologna fashioned the best opportunity of the first half when Tommaso Pobega unleashed a fierce 25-yard effort that was superbly parried away by Udinese goalkeeper Maduka Okoye in the 35th minute.
That save sparked the hosts into life before the break. Santiago Castro came close to producing a moment of brilliance, meeting a loose ball with an acrobatic volley inside the area, but his effort sailed narrowly over the crossbar.
It was an encouraging finish to the half for Bologna, who were keen to halt a poor run of results following European fixtures.
After the restart, the home side maintained their momentum and squandered a golden opportunity on 54 minutes. Riccardo Orsolini capitalised on a defensive lapse, only for Okoye to rush out and make a courageous stop.
The rebound fell kindly to Jonathan Rowe, but his attempted chip was cleared off the line by Jordan Zemura.
The decisive moment arrived in controversial fashion. Referee Matteo Marcenaro pointed to the spot after a VAR review ruled that Jesper Karlström had fouled Castro right on the edge of the box.
The decision sparked protests from the visitors, but Bernardeschi remained composed to dispatch the penalty and score in consecutive Serie A matches against Udinese.
Udinese pushed forward late on in search of an equaliser. Nicolò Zaniolo dragged a promising effort wide, while Jakub Piotrowski tested Łukasz Skorupski with a set-piece, but Bologna held firm.
The result lifts Italiano’s men as they now shift attention to the UEFA Europa League last-16 playoff second leg against Brann on Thursday night.
