Antonio Di Natale struck an 89th-minute equaliser to hand 10-man Udinese an unlikely share of the points in a dramatic 1-1 draw at home to Palermo on Saturday.
Palermo held a 1-0 half-time lead at the Stadio Friuli after Josip Ilicic's superb 33rd minute strike, which impressive 'keeper Zeljko Brkic simply could not stop hitting the back of the net.
Although Udinese were creating chances, the Sicilians continued to dominate in the second half and were given a helping hand when Thomas Heurteaux was shown a red card for a rash challenge on the hour mark.
Palermo came close to making their advantage count on several occasions but saw Eros Pisano, Egidio Rios and Franco Brienza all denied by an alert Brkic when they were in great scoring positions.
Brkic's heroics would make the difference in the end for Udinese, who transformed an unlikely goalscoring chance into the equaliser at the death.
Samir Ujkani had had little to do in the second half but after blocking an innocuous header from Luis Muriel on the edge of the box the Palermo 'keeper dropped the ball in front of goal after being impeded by one of his own defenders.
It fell into the path of Di Natale, who took one touch before smashing it home for the equaliser.
Palermo's sixth draw of the season meant a missed chance to move further away from the relegation zone, while Udinese's eighth draw kept them eighth ahead of the rest of the weekend fixtures.
Saturday's programme concludes with Inter Milan's visit to Lazio. Leaders Juventus hold a four-point lead over the Nerazzurri.
Source: AFP
