Siena kicked off the new season with a six-point penalty - meted out for their involvement in match-fixing - but with tonight's victory, Serse Cosmi's men leapfrogged Palermo and Cagliari to 18th place.

With two points on the board, Siena are now only three places shy of Pioli's Rossoblu, who have lost three of their first five games.

Panagiotis Kone had the first effort with a screamer from 25 metres that Siena goalkeeper Gianluca Pegolo fingertipped out from under the crossbar.

Soon after, Pegolo was again tested by a Gilardino free header, while from the corner Niccolo Cherubin nodded wide.

The only chances were coming from Bologna and Pegolo performed a stunning reaction save to deny Archimede Morleo's long-range free kick, the goalkeeper readjusting his position mid-air to beat it away with a trailing fist.

Emanuele Calaio was incorrectly flagged offside to ruin a good Siena opportunity, but they were visibly more fired up after the break, as Cosmi must've shaken the locker room walls.

Yet Pegolo was called upon again with his palms stung by a splendid Marco Motta curler towards the top corner.

Incredibly, Siena took the lead without ever really testing the Bologna goalkeeper, as Calaio hit a hopeful effort from outside the box that took a massive deflection off Mikael Antonsson's toe to leave Federico Agliardi stranded.

Kone couldn't get enough on his glancing header, while Gilardino went down under a Felipe nudge from behind, but the referee waved play on. Coach Stefano Pioli took his protests too far and was sent off.

Pegolo denied substitute Manolo Gabbiadini at the near post after a defensive error and Agliardi finally made his first real save after 87 minutes on Andrea Sestu's rising angled drive.