Cremonese came into this contest with some rare momentum after thrashing fellow strugglers Pisa 3-0 last week, and they translated that into a fast start here.
The visitors threatened on a number of occasions before breaking the deadlock in the ninth minute through the evergreen Jamie Vardy, who showed tremendous composure to turn home the rebound after Maduka Okoye had parried Federico Bonazzoli’s effort into his path.
That was the 39-year-old’s second match opener in as many weeks, and the fourth of his last five strikes to arrive inside 35 minutes.
A sluggish Udinese outfit never really got going in the first half, and their misery was compounded when a penalty they were awarded for a foul by Sebastiano Luperto on Christian Kabasele was overturned by VAR due to an offside in the build-up.
While the hosts could hardly have been worse, they emerged from half time with renewed intent, and though they still struggled to create clear-cut chances, Cremonese’s rearguard looked nervous as they clung on to their slender one-goal lead.
Udinese’s comeback efforts looked to have suffered a huge blow when Hassane Kamara was issued a red card for a high challenge on Jamie Vardy after arriving second into a 50-50 duel, but the hosts received a reprieve as the decision was quickly reversed and a yellow brandished instead.
Marco Giampaolo’s men settled from there, and survived another scare when Adam Buksa’s would-be equaliser was chalked off for a series of fouls in the immediate build-up.
Oumar Solet’s long-range strike forced Emil Audero into late action, ensuring that Cremonese ultimately held on to secure a first Serie A H2H victory over Udinese in 41 years, yet a late winner for Lecce against Sassuolo means they’re a point adrift of safety ahead of their final day showdown with UEFA Champions League chasers Como.
Udinese, meanwhile, squandered the chance to leapfrog Lazio and have now won just three of their 10 home matches this season against the sides below them.