Samardzic Rescues Atalanta in Stoppage Time Against a Bologna Side That Deserved More

The clock read minute 95, deep into stoppage time, when Lazar Samardzic showed up from outside the box to send a left-footed strike low into the corner, just inside the post. That goal, assisted by Nicola Zalewski, gave Atalanta a narrow 1-0 win over Bologna at the New Balance Arena in Serie A action. It was a victory that arrived almost by theft, since for long stretches of the match it was Bologna doing more to earn something out of the game.

The first half ended scoreless, but with more scares for Atalanta than for their opponents. Bologna served notice early: in the 7th minute, Nicolo Cambiaghi tried his luck with a left-footed effort from inside the box, only to be denied by a low save from the home goalkeeper. Ten minutes later, Roberto Piccoli headed in from close range off a Federico Bernardeschi cross, again finding a save waiting for him. Atalanta's lone response before the break came from a Gianluca Scamacca attempt, which was also snuffed out.

A Post and Then Resistance to the Final Whistle

The second half followed much the same script. Nicolo Cambiaghi rattled the right post in the 51st minute after being set up by Rahim Alhassane, the clearest chance of the entire match for Bologna to break the deadlock. Substitutions came in for both sides (Zalewski and Elmas replaced De Ketelaere and Raspadori for Atalanta, while Orsolini and Dovbyk came on for Odgaard and Piccoli at Bologna) and the game stretched on without anyone finding the decisive blow. Bernardeschi had another clear look in the 87th minute, with his low shot to the left saved, and Amondarain missed another chance a minute later. It seemed the scoreless draw would hold until, deep into four minutes of added time, Samardzic, who had come on in the 67th minute, settled things with a left-footed strike that left a Bologna side that had done more to deserve the win with nothing to show for it.

The numbers back up that sense of a match controlled in play but not on the scoreboard:

Bologna controlled the ball and piled up the attempts, but their finishing let them down. That story is confirmed by the xG generated in the match, an estimate calculated from shot locations: 1.226 for Bologna against just 0.261 for Atalanta. In other words, the visiting side created nearly five times more expected danger than the home team, but ran into the precise efficiency of a single well-placed shot at exactly the right moment.

The result also stands in contrast to what was projected before kickoff. The pre-match forecast gave Atalanta a 49% chance of winning, 29% for a draw, and 22% for a Bologna win, with expected goals of 1.55 for the home side and 0.96 for the visitors. The final score ended up tighter than that script suggested: Atalanta won, yes, but with a single late goal and after being clearly outplayed, something the pre-match projection did not anticipate.

Where It Leaves the Table

In the standings, Atalanta arrives at this match with 6 points from 2 games played, with 2 wins and a goal difference of plus 2, sitting in fifth place. Bologna, meanwhile, remains without a point after 2 matches, with 2 losses and a goal difference of minus 2, in 15th place. The 6 point gap between the two clubs was already starting to show before this match, and Atalanta's win, however slim on the scoreboard, deepens that gap in a tournament still in its early rounds.

What remains from this match is the image of a Bologna side that played more, shot more, and created more, yet leaves with nothing to show for it. And an Atalanta side that, without needing to shine, found in Samardzic and Zalewski the exact combination needed to grab all three points in the match's dying breath.