Bournemouth put 10 past Serie A side Genoa in friendly – or do they? Why teams have disagreed on scoreline after 'no contest' pre-season thrashing

React to this story

Racking up cricket scores in pre-season is not exactly a novelty. Big clubs often choose to sharpen up for the new campaign by taking on lower-league opposition, with one-sided contests and unusually hefty margins of victory ensuing.

'A good version of Alex' - Iraola backs Isak for 'massive' Liverpool season

Video credit: SNTV

However, one result caught the eye on Tuesday: Premier League side Bournemouth hammering Serie A stalwarts Genoa 10-1.

It was the kind of scoreline normally reserved for complete mismatches, not a clash between two sides who compete in major European leagues.

The Cherries continued their impressive pre-season form under new boss Marco Rose, as the thrashing of the Grifone followed big wins against German sides St Pauli (4-1) and Augsburg (5-2).

Premier League

Alonso coy on Chelsea future for 'special' Mudryk ahead of potential return

9 hours ago

In their biggest victory yet, Justin Kluivert netted a hat-trick at the Bournemouth Performance Centre, while Alex Scott and Enes Unal bagged braces, and Daniel Jebbison, David Brooks and Malcom Dacosta Gonzalez were also on target.

However, it soon transpired that all was not quite as it seemed.

”The contest was played over 120 minutes, with four 30-minute periods making up the fixture,” Bournemouth said in their match report.

The game was effectively made up of two hour-long training matches, with Rose fielding two completely different sides for the first and second sets of 60 minutes.

For that reason, Genoa refused to describe it as a friendly match on their official website, but rather a ”joint training session”.

The Italian club's official social media accounts did not record the score as 10-1, but rather wrote out the final score of each of the four 30-minute periods.

Genoa then reported two separate defeats of 4-1 and 6-0, but did accept that "the English were stronger and a step ahead in their preparation."

”There's work to be done. It's well known. In the joint training at the Bournemouth Performance Center, there was no contest,” it said.

”The difference is there. That's okay. Our opponents are showing off their qualities, a squad perhaps out of reach and in better form.”

The result came after a 1-0 win over Leicester City at King Power Stadium as Daniele De Rossi's side shape up for a new Serie A season.

The Italian press was not forgiving despite Genoa’s efforts to water down the 10-1 scoreline.

”Genoa shock! 10-1 from Bournemouth, the worst friendly ever,” said Tuttosport’s front page on Thursday. Genoa-based newspaper Il Secolo XIX called it a ”lesson in football.”

For Bournemouth, it was another encouraging sign ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.

Rose came in to replace Andoni Iraola in the off-season when the Spaniard joined Liverpool after leading The Cherries to a stunning sixth-place finish in the Premier League.

That was enough to earn the club its first-ever European adventure next season, when they will compete in the UEFA Europa League.

Rose has so far bolstered his squad with the signings of Uruguayan striker Alvaro Rodriguez from Elche and Portugal international centre-back Antonio Silva from Benfica.

Bournemouth will face La Liga side Real Betis on Saturday in their next pre-season test.

Add TNT Sports as a preferred source here to enjoy more content like this.

Stream the Premier League, Men’s and Women’s FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more on TNT Sports and HBO Max

Premier League

'Huge opportunity I couldn't turn down' - Chelsea sign Henderson on free transfer

Yesterday at 20:03

Premier League

Havertz targets 'all the trophies' and aims for Arsenal to 'reach another level'

02/08/2026 at 23:43