On Sunday, taking advantage of the break Domenico Tedesco gave the squad after their friendly against Arminia Bielefeld, the Bologna captain reported to the club's training camp in Valles and got straight to work.
Fresh off Scotland's World Cup campaign, the midfielder put in a personalised double training session to start building up his minutes and match fitness ahead of rejoining the group.
His arrival is a welcome boost for Bologna, who will gradually welcome back the rest of their World Cup contingent over the coming days. Nikola Moro is expected to be the next to arrive, on Wednesday, while timings for Jhon Lucumí and Torbjørn Heggem are still to be confirmed. The Colombian defender is coming off an impressive World Cup and remains one of the most sought-after names on the market, keeping his future one of the summer's hot topics at the club.
Heggem will join up once his own World Cup run with Norway, eliminated in the quarter-finals by England, comes to an end.
Elsewhere, Jonathan Rowe was the unwanted protagonist of Bologna's last friendly. The club is preparing internal disciplinary action against the English winger after he was sent off during the defeat to Arminia Bielefeld, having reacted to a shove from an opponent with a heated confrontation that ended in a red card and left Bologna playing roughly 50 minutes with ten men.
On the transfer front, left-back Rahim Alhassane, 24, was due at Bologna's Isokinetic centre for a medical before joining his new teammates at the Valles training camp. The Niger international arrives to provide cover for Juan Miranda on the left flank.
Between returning internationals, incoming signings and outstanding business still to resolve, Bologna's squad continues to take shape. Day by day, the group is edging closer to its final configuration, giving Tedesco an increasingly complete pool of players to work with as he prepares for the start of the 2026-27 season.