Orban Scores, Okoye Smiles As Udinese Sink Verona in Serie A Clash
2 min read
By Sedara Philip
Gift Orban found the back of the net for Hellas Verona, but his effort proved insufficient as Maduka Okoye-inspired Udinese claimed a convincing 3–1 away victory in their Serie A encounter on Monday night.
The Nigerian forward continued his impressive run in Italy, netting his seventh league goal of the season to go with one assist in 18 appearances for Verona.
However, his strike could not halt his side’s worrying form, while compatriot Maduka Okoye featured in goal for Udinese, making his 13th league appearance of the campaign.
Udinese took the lead in the 23rd minute through Arthur Atta, but Verona responded swiftly as Orban restored parity just three minutes later with a composed finish to make it 1–1.
The second half belonged to the visitors. Alessandro Zanoli fired Udinese back in front in the 58th minute, before Keinan Davis sealed the victory with a third goal nine minutes later, extinguishing any hopes of a Verona comeback.
The win marked a return to winning ways for Udinese after a run of one draw and one defeat in their previous two matches.
The victory lifted them to 10th position on the Serie A table with 29 points.
For Hellas Verona, the defeat deepened their struggles.
They have now gone six consecutive league matches without a win, recording four losses and two draws, and remain rooted in 19th place with just 14 points.
Despite the contrasting fortunes, both Nigerian stars once again left their mark on the Italian topflight, highlighting their growing influence in Serie A.
Sedara Philip is a Sports writer, an administrator,Journalist,and editor
