With their 1-0 victory over Empoli at the Dall'Ara on Sunday afternoon, Bologna briefly climbed to eighth position in the Serie A standings. Riccardo Orsolini scored both goals for Bologna. Meanwhile, Empoli has dropped to 19th position in Serie A and may go to the bottom of the standings if Cagliari defeats Fiorentina on Monday night.
Unexpectedly, the visitors had the better record of the two teams going into the match, having defeated Bologna seven times in the past, even if Empoli has already had some difficulty in the 2023–24 season. Bologna's Riccardo Orsolini opened the scoring after 21 minutes. The 26-year-old's individual brilliance coupled with a botched clearing gave Thiago Motta's team the advantage. Orsolini, betting on Joshua Zirkzee's knock-on, produced an excellent flick to move the ball in front of him, then used the same foot to lift the ball over a charging defender before hammering home from close range into the near corner.