Bologna forward Jonathan Rowe enters the final stretch of pre-season carrying the weight of a red card, a paid fine, and an uncertain future — all before the 2025-26 Serie A campaign has been formally assessed and a new one begun. The 23-year-old was sent off for violent conduct during Bologna's 4-0 defeat to Arminia Bielefeld, a result that also marked the rossoblù's first outing under new head coach Domenico Tedesco.
The fine has since been settled. Bologna's chief executive confirmed the club are actively trying to retain Rowe, a statement that carries more complexity than reassurance. When a club feels compelled to publicly declare it wants to keep a player, the subtext is usually that external interest is real and the player's own commitment is not guaranteed.
That tension is worth examining against what Rowe actually produced last season. Across 27 Serie A appearances, he contributed three goals and two assists, carrying an average rating of 6.80. Modest numbers for a wide forward, and an AI overall score of 71 suggests the ceiling is meaningfully higher than what the campaign delivered. The gap between current output and projected ceiling is precisely the kind of profile that attracts clubs willing to gamble on development — and precisely the kind of profile that makes retention negotiations complicated.
Bologna, sitting eighth in the table on 55 points from 37 matches under Vincenzo Italiano's stewardship last season, are now rebuilding their identity under Tedesco. The club has already moved in the transfer market, securing Argentine midfielder Mikel Amondarain for a reported fee above ten million euros. That investment signals ambition. Losing Rowe — particularly to a club outside Serie A — would partially undercut it.
The Bielefeld red card is not a career-defining moment, but it is a complicating one. Violent conduct carries an automatic suspension, and arriving at the start of a new regime with disciplinary baggage is not the way to earn early trust from a head coach still learning his squad. Tedesco needs to know who he can rely on. Rowe's pre-season so far has answered that question poorly.
The fine is paid. The goodwill, if there was any to spend, is thinner. Bologna want to keep him — the question is whether Rowe wants the same, and whether his performances between now and the season opener will give Tedesco a reason to build around him rather than move on without him.