Maduka Okoye labelled an “excellent” goalkeeper

Former Juventus goalkeeper Emanuele Belardi has hailed Udinese’s Maduka Okoye as an excellent shot-stopper.

Belardi made the comments following Okoye’s impressive performance during Udinese’s narrow 1-0 loss to Juventus in Saturday’s Italian Serie A clash.

​Belardi’s thoughts on Okoye

​Speaking with Calcio Udinese, Belardi had nothing but praise for the Nigerian international’s goalkeeping abilities, though he noted that the youngster still has room to grow in certain tactical areas.

“Okoye is now an excellent goalkeeper.

He just needs to improve his game management, because sometimes he plays too instinctively.

But he’s making progress. You can see that there’s a lot of work behind him and that he’s matured a lot.”

So far in the 2025/2026 Serie A campaign, Okoye has established himself as a vital piece of the Udinese defense. In 21 appearances, he has recorded 5 clean sheets and made 58 saves, maintaining a solid 69% save percentage.