Club Career
Though born in Naples, Antonio Di Natale moved up north and joined Empoli's youth system. He impressed while playing for the Tuscany side in Serie A.
After having joined Udinese in the 2004–05 Serie A season, Di Natale partnered with Vincenzo Iaquinta and David Di Michele in attack, and the Friulian club finished 4th place at the end of the season and qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the following year. In his debut season Di Natale played 33 games and scored seven goals.
In the 2007–08 season, Di Natale scored 17 goals. The two most notable goals were scored on matchday 4, when Udinese played against Reggina. He scored a brilliant lob in the 5th minute and a terrific volley in the 63rd with his unfavored left foot. Forming a formidable attacking duo with Fabio Quagliarella, Di Natale improved his goal tally, becoming the focal point of the attack. In 2007, he was named captain of Udinese and his contract was extended to 30 June 2012.
15 May 2010 saw the conclusion of Di Natale's best-ever season, scoring 29 goals in Serie A, and contributing 54% of Udinese's total goals. He also surpassed Oliver Bierhoff's club record for most league goals in a season, who had scored 28. A brace against Bari on 9 May 2010 saw Di Natale surpass the 100 goal mark in Serie A. For his performances, Di Natale was voted Italian Footballer of the Year and finished as the top scorer in Serie A. He also received the Serie A Fair Play award, for interrupting play in a match while Lazio's Libor Kozák was injured, with Udinese down 3–2 late in the game.
On 14 November 2010, he scored a hat-trick during a match with Udinese against Lecce and on 28 November 2010, he scored a second consecutive home hat trick during a match against Napoli. During the 2010–11 season, Di Natale had the best strike rate of any player in Italy, scoring 28 goals in 36 games with a strike rate of 0.78 goals per game. This was also the third best strike rate in Europe, behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
On 4 July 2012 he signed a new 2-year contract with the club.
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