Keeper Carnesecchi earns point for fortunate Atalanta at Udinese

UDINE, Italy : Atalanta were held 0-0 at Udinese in Serie A on Saturday as they missed the chance to move level on points with leaders Napoli but they were fortunate to escape with a draw thanks to the woodwork and alert goalkeeping of Marco Carnesecchi.

Atalanta's second draw in a row means they are second on 42 points, two behind leaders Napoli who have also played 19 games and host Hellas Verona on Sunday. Udinese are ninth with 26.

The hosts dominated most of the match and came agonisingly close just after the half-hour mark when Carnesecchi had to make a remarkable save to claw a header from Jaka Bijol off the line.

Atalanta rode their luck again shortly before the break as Udinese’s Alexis Sanchez struck the woodwork with a header and rattled the crossbar from the rebound before Carnesecchi kept out Sandi Lovric’s effort in a dramatic sequence of attempts.

However, Atalanta nearly snatched victory in the dying moments when Lazar Samardzic had their second shot on target but Razvan Sava made a crucial save to ensure it ended goalless.