Liverpool vs Bologna facts

Liverpool will look to banish the memory of their last home match against Italian visitors when UEFA Champions League debutants Bologna come to Anfield on Matchday 2.

Beaten by Atalanta in last season's UEFA Europa League quarter-finals – the damage done by a 0-3 home first-leg loss – the six-time European Cup winners kicked off their latest campaign with a 3-1 victory at AC Milan. Bologna, meanwhile, took a point from their first Champions League match, drawing 0-0 at home to Shakhtar Donetsk.

This is the sides' first meeting – and just Bologna's third game against an English club.

Form guide

Liverpool

Record vs Italian clubs: W18 D6 L18 F55 A52
Home record vs Italian clubs: W10 D1 L7

This is Liverpool's fourth successive European game against Italian opponents. Prior to their 3-1 win in Milan this season, their 2023/24 Europa League campaign was ended in the quarter-finals by Atalanta (0-3 h, 1-0 a).

The Reds have won three of their last four games against Italian clubs. At Anfield, however, it is two victories in their last six games – a run that includes three defeats.

This is Liverpool's 16th Champions League campaign; they have reached the final five times, lifting the trophy in 2005 and 2019.

The Merseyside club last featured in 2022/23, finishing second in their section behind Napoli before being edged out by Real Madrid in the round of 16 (2-5 h, 0-1 a).

Liverpool have won ten of their last 15 Champions League matches at Anfield (D2 L3).

Jürgen Klopp's team took part in the Europa League in 2023/24, finishing first in their section with four wins and two defeats. They overwhelmed Sparta Praha in the round of 16 (5-1 a, 6-1 h) but came up short against eventual winners Atalanta in the last eight.

Liverpool were third in last season's Premier League, nine points behind champions Manchester City.

That was Klopp's last season in charge after nine years at Anfield; Arne Slot came in from Feyenoord to replace the German.

Bologna

Record vs English clubs: W0 D1 L1 F3 A5
Away record vs English clubs: W0 D0 L1

Bologna's only previous games against an English club came in the 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup when they lost 3-5 on aggregate to Fulham in a final (2-2 h, 1-3 a).

This is Bologna's first Champions League campaign. They are the 11th Italian side to appear in the competition proper and the first newcomers since Atalanta in 2019/20.

Their only previous European Cup campaign lasted a single tie, Bologna losing on a coin toss to Anderlecht in the 1964/65 preliminary round (0-1 a, 2-1 h, 0-0 play-off).

Bologna are one of five clubs making their Champions League debuts in 2024/25, along with Brest, Aston Villa, Girona and Slovan Bratislava.

Matchday 1 was Bologna's first European fixture since that Intertoto Cup final against Fulham in August 2002.

The Italian side's away record in UEFA competition is W7 D4 L12.

Champions of Italy seven times – most recently in 1964 – Bologna were fifth in Serie A in 2023/24, setting a new club record of 68 points. It was their highest finish since 1966/67, when they were third.

Thiago Motta, who had been in charge since September 2022, left for Juventus in the summer. Vincenzo Italiano, who guided Fiorentina to the UEFA Europa Conference League final in each of the last two seasons, was named as his replacement.

Links and trivia

Have played in England:
Samuel Iling-Junior (Chelsea youth 2011–20, Aston Villa 2024)
Remo Freuler (Nottingham Forest 2022/23)

Have played in Italy:
Alisson Becker (Roma 2016–18)
Mohamed Salah (Fiorentina 2015 loan, Roma 2015–17)
Federico Chiesa (Fiorentina 2007–20, Juventus 2020–24)

Chiesa has scored seven goals in 11 appearances against Bologna, including a hat-trick in Fiorentina's 4-0 home Serie A win on 29 July 2020.

Bologna goalkeeper Łukasz Skorupski was Alisson's deputy at Roma in 2017/18.

Have also played together:
Federico Chiesa & Samuel Iling-Junior (Juventus 2022-24)

International team-mates:
Virgil van Dijk, Cody Gakpo & Thijs Dallinga (Netherlands)
Luis Díaz & Jhon Lucumi (Colombia)
Charalampos Lykogiannis & Kostas Tsimikas (Greece)

Latest news

Liverpool

Liverpool have won five of their six Premier League games this season. On Saturday a Mohamed Salah penalty earned a 2-1 victory at Wolves.

Salah has four goals and four assists in this season's Premier League.

Liverpool have lost two of their last six Premier League games at Anfield, having suffered only one defeat in the previous 58.

Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo both scored twice in a 5-1 League Cup win against West Ham on 25 September.

The Reds will visit Brighton in the last 16.

Alisson Becker started on Saturday having not played since Matchday 1 due to a thigh injury.

Harvey Elliott is likely to be out until late October with a fractured foot.

Bologna

Ten-man Bologna conceded a 90th-minute equaliser to draw 1-1 at home to Atalanta on Saturday. Santiago Castro had opened the scoring with his third goal in four games.

On 22 September Bologna won their first game of the season at the sixth attempt, a 2-1 Serie A success at Monza.

Kacper Urbański scored his first career goal with a header while Castro got the winner having also struck in a 2-2 draw at Como the previous week.

Bologna's last six Serie A goals have been scored by players aged 21 or under.

Lewis Ferguson has been out since 13 April, when he underwent knee surgery on a ligament injury.

Nicolò Casale suffered a thigh injury at Monza while a knee ligament sprain has sidelined Tommaso Pobega since Matchday 1.

Summer signing Nicolò Cambiaghi suffered a knee ligament injury after his Bologna debut on 18 August and is not expected to play again this year. He has not been included in the Champions League squad, while Oussama El Azzouzi also missed out with a knee injury.