Lorenzo Pellegrini came off the bench to earn Roma a 1-1 draw with Bologna to ensure the all-Italian Europa League last-16 tie is finely poised.

Federico Bernardeschi put Bologna ahead early in the second half, but Gian Piero Gasperini’s side fought back to level at Stadio Renato Dall’Ara.

Bryan Zaragoza fizzed a low shot across goal and wide of the left post after a pacy counter-attack, but Bologna finished the first half on top.

Bernardeschi saw a low cross parried away by Mile Svilar at the near post before cutting inside shortly after to test the goalkeeper, who was at full stretch to keep out the forward’s curler.

And Bernardeschi broke the deadlock in the 50th minute. He was unmarked on the right of the box and bent his effort into the far side of the goal.

Donyell Malen then struck the woodwork before Tommaso Pobega spurned a glorious chance to double Bologna’s lead, as he took too long over a one-on-one with Svilar.

Roma made Pobega pay for his profligacy, with Pellegrini in the right place to guide his finish into a vacant net under no pressure.

Malen saw a chance cleared off the line as Roma chased a comeback victory, but at the other end, they were saved by the crossbar, with Martin Vitik’s header just too high.

Triplice fischio al Dall’Ara

Al vantaggio di Bernardeschi, ha risposto Pellegrini #BolognaRoma #UEL pic.twitter.com/9KvQcfJy6v

— AS Roma (@OfficialASRoma) March 12, 2026

Elsewhere, Panathinaikos hold a 1-0 lead over Real Betis thanks to a late Vicente Taborda penalty as both sides finished with 10 men.

And Porto also have a first-leg lead, with Terem Moffi and Rodrigo Mora’s quickfire first-half goals giving them a 2-1 advantage against Stuttgart.

Data Debrief: Pellegrini turns the tide

Roma had their chances on either side of Bologna’s opener, but it took a composed finish from Pellegrini to keep them on level terms heading to Stadio Olimpico next week.

Despite only having one shot, he recorded the highest individual expected goals (xG) tally on the pitch of 0.67, while he also created two chances in his influential 25-minute cameo.

Bologna, however, have only lost one of their last seven meetings with Roma in all competitions (W3 D3), while they are unbeaten in their last 10 Europa League matches (W6 D4).