Jurgen Ekkelenkamp 's second-half header proved decisive as Udinese claimed a hard-fought victory at Genoa , moving above Sassuolo into tenth place in Serie A, before an injury-time goal from Keinan Davis sealed the three points.
It was a match of few clear-cut chances and considerable frustration for the home side, who will feel they did enough to earn at least a point.
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Lorenzo Colombo struck the crossbar in the first half, Ruslan Malinovskyi did the same from a free kick shortly after, and a penalty appeared to have been awarded in the second half only for VAR to intervene and rule it out, a decision that proved costly.
The first goal of the game arrived on 66 minutes when Nicolo Zaniolo , making his presence felt on his return to the Luigi Ferraris (where he spent two years as a youth player), floated a clever lofted pass into the box for Ekkelenkamp, who met it with a composed header into the middle of the goal.
GENOA, ITALY – MARCH 20: Jurgen Ekkelenkamp of Udinese Calcio celebrates scoring his team's first goal with teammate Nicolo Zaniolo and Jesper Karlstroem during the Serie A match between Genoa CFC and Udinese Calcio at Luigi Ferraris Stadium on March 20, 2026 in Genoa, Italy. (Photo by Simone Arveda/Getty Images)
Goalkeeper Maduka Okoye was otherwise rarely troubled throughout, making comfortable saves when called upon as Genoa's attacking efforts lacked the precision to genuinely threaten.
Udinese put the game to bed deep into stoppage time, when Keinan Davis found the back of the net on the counter.
The three points move Kosta Runjaic's side onto 40 points, one behind ninth-placed Lazio and eight adrift of seventh-placed Atalanta .
European qualification remains a distant prospect given the clubs between them, but it has not yet been ruled out mathematically, and this victory will do nothing to dampen growing optimism around a Udinese side quietly building momentum in the second half of the season.
For Daniele De Rossi 's Genoa, the defeat is a more pressing concern. They remain in 14th and with several relegation rivals yet to play this weekend, the gap above the bottom three could shrink before Sunday is out.
