Udinese 3-1 Inter: A harsh loss for the Nerazzurri

left disappointed as

won 3-1 at Stadio Friuli thanks to late goals from Jaka Bijol and Tolgay Arslan. After

Nicolo Barella

put the visitors up early in the game, an own goal by

Milan Skriniar

tied things up.

Bijol's intense glance off Gerard Deulofeu's corner and Arslan's crisp header in stoppage time gave Udinese the win when it appeared both teams would have to settle for a draw.

Udinese is now in the first place, one game ahead of Milan's match against

Napoli

and one round of Atalanta's trip to Roma, so Simone Inzaghi's team will have their work cut out for them in October if they want to go back into the top four.

After a lively back-and-forth opening, Inter went up 1-0 on a free-kick from 20 yards out that was expertly directed by Barella into the upper left corner. Udinese were undaunted, though, and evened the score when Skriniar deflected a free kick from Roberto Pereyra beyond his goalie.

believed he had put Inter back in front after putting Barella's ball into the net 10 minutes into the second half, but he was called offside. This reprieve bolstered Udinese's confidence, and they eventually forced a save out of Samir Handanovic and finally won it when Bijol shook off his defender and scored.

Arslan's close-range finish sparked unrest among the home support as Udinese's impressive start to the season continued, despite late pressure from Inter for an equalizer that ultimately came to naught.

Just what does this mean, exactly? Yet another setback for Inter

They had an opportunity to move up to the first place, at least temporarily, ahead of their hosts. Still, Inzaghi's team may be as low as seventh going into the international break. This is much slower than they would like, even in the thick of a European struggle.

Club record equaled by Udinese

Udinese's incredible start has been thrilling to behold and is also unprecedented in club history. With 16 points after seven games, they have tied their most excellent start in Serie A, recorded in 2000-01.

Another setback for Skriniar

The Slovak is getting a bad rep for continually scoring his own goals. Since the beginning of the 2017-18 season, when he made his club debut, no other player in Serie A has scored more own goals than he has. 

Opta Facts

Five consecutive wins in Serie A for Udinese is a club record that hasn't been accomplished since December 2017 (when Massimo Oddo was the coach). In the meantime, Inter have lost three consecutive road games in Serie A for the first time since May 2017 (under Stefano Pioli). Udinese have the best scoring margin in the final 15 minutes of Serie A, 22-23, with six goals.

Udinese have scored seven of their past eight league goals in the final 20 minutes of games. Barella's Serie A record for quickest goal is five minutes. During his last four Serie A appearances, he has had a hand in four goals (2 goals, two assists). On October 1st, Inter will host Roma in their Serie A season opener, and on October 3rd, Udinese will go to Verona.

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