Inter 1-2 Udinese: Davis and Atta strike in memorable comeback win

First-half goals from Keinan Davis and Arthur Atta saw Udinese recover from 1-0 down to hand Inter their first defeat of the Serie A season, winning 2-1 at San Siro.

Cristian Chivu’s first league game in charge of the Nerazzurri resulted in a thumping 5-0 home win over Torino on matchday one, but his team got a reality check on Sunday.

Things started well for Inter as Denzel Dumfries tapped home in the 17th minute, capping a brilliant move that included a silky turn on halfway from Lautaro Martinez and some inventive juggling from Marcus Thuram inside the area.

But Udinese were back level within 12 minutes, with Dumfries going from hero to villain as he was penalised for handball from a set-piece. Former Aston Villa striker Davis kept his cool from the spot, sending Yann Sommer the wrong way.

Davis then turned provider as Udinese went ahead five minutes before the break, though Atta took the plaudits after collecting his simple pass and bending a glorious finish into the far corner.

Inter thought they had equalised via Federico Dimarco’s 56th-minute drive, but a VAR review resulted in the goal being disallowed for an offside in the build-up, before Davis missed a decent chance to give Udinese a two-goal lead at the other end.

The hosts laid siege to Udinese’s area in the closing stages, but Nicolo Barella blazed over following a goalmouth scramble and Carlos Augusto had a header blocked on the line as the visitors bravely held on.

The result sees Udinese leapfrog Inter to go fifth in the early-season standings, heading into the international break with four points. Four teams have maximum points – Napoli, Juventus, Cremonese and Roma.

Data Debrief: Udinese end Nerazzurri hoodoo

Kosta Runjaic’s team arrived in Milan looking to snap a dire record on the road against Inter.

Udinese had lost their last seven away matches against the Nerazzurri in Serie A, only ever losing more in a row at Fiorentina between 2008 and 2020 (13) and Napoli between 2015 and 2023 (10).

Chivu, meanwhile, was hoping to become only the fifth Inter coach to win his first two Serie A games at the helm without conceding, after Giuseppe Meazza in 1947, Alfredo Foni in 1952, Aldo Campatelli in 1955 and Walter Mazzarri in 2013.

But Udinese refused to be disheartened by Dumfries’ strike, roaring back to score two first-half goals in an away game against Inter for the first time since May 19, 2013, when they claimed a memorable 5-2 triumph at San Siro.