Another ridiculous start to the Serie A season then and it’s the unlikely underdogs Salernitana that sit top of the table after 8 games. Conceding a miserly 4 goals is a foundation many a success has been built on here in Italy but there’s an awful long way to go indeed. Meanwhile, defending champions Bologna and their succession plans are very much in the mix. With Roberto Baggio surely coming towards the end of his mightily impressive career, manager Dave Black has to find a way to replace the Divine Ponytail at some point. Will he find a solution or continue to spend lavishly on Premier League has beens? Either way, week 9 looks to be a big one as the top two go head to head.

Here is that table before we start…

In the papers today the Bologna fans are once again questioning the transfer judgment of their manager. Dave Black may have guided Bologna to the Champions League group stages but his decision to shell out £5.5 million on Dwight Yorke has not gone down well. Fans are questioning the players off field antics and indeed one fan said “Preferirei avere il Micker” which loosely transaltes as “I’d rather have the Micker.” And who can blame him? Work to be done then for the Rossoblu’s who it has to be said are somehow ticking along nicely, despite their squad looking like a lost and found from 1994.

Yes indeed James. Bologna have made an unbeaten yet average start to Season 2 life. The most important aspect of last weeks update was to get into the Champions League groups, which we achieved easily. Then, despite being given a tough draw, we’re still in with a shot of escaping the group, so the garden is somewhat rosy. But will it be Rossoblu?

With the new season nearly upon us, we cast an eye over not-so-little Bologna. With Champions League football just a qualifying round away, the board have taken the rather bold step of expanding the stadium. That’ll impede the manager’s spending, much to manager Dave Black’s chagrin, but if it means less signings like Micky Quinn then, well, maybe that’s no bad thing. Stoichkov has joined the party, all set for a Romario reunion as the Barca boys are back together, but it’s another ageing star for Black to contend with. When will they start looking to the future?

Thanks for that Jimbo. Good morning and here we are back with Bologna, looking to improve the squad enough for us to be able to compete with the very best. Tracking down Juve is one thing which might take a while, whereas the glut of big clubs gunning for us is very much a threat here and now. Here’s a reminder of how we got ourselves in with Europe’s elite:

Now to events in Emilia-Romagna, where the natives are not sure what to make of new manager Dave Black. His transfer strategy has raised eyebrows, particularly the sight of portly veteran Mick Quinn leading the line. Black had suggested he was the man to take Bologna to the Champions League but one writer in the Gazetta describes him as a “goffo maldestro“, or a bumbling oaf to you and I. Despite a bright start, a loss of form has seen the Rossoblu fall to 7th. There’s also suggestions that Black’s wild spending has left the club in financial ruin, leading to calls in some quarters for the Tyneside man to be removed from his position before it’s too late.

Thanks to James for that glowing introduction. We score lots, we concede lots. Let’s Bologna.