The Udinese icon has decided to postpone his retirement for another year after revealing he wants to reach more goalscoring landmarks
Antonio di Natale has confirmed he will prolong his playing career in order to move further up the list of Serie A's all-time top goalscorers.
The 37-year-old forward had originally intended to retire last summer only to have a change of heart and commit himself to Udinese for a further season.
His decision has proved to be a good one after scoring 14 times this season to take his overall Serie A goals tally to 206, which has seen him become the division's sixth highest ever scorer.
Di Natale is now just 10 goals shy of Jose Altafini and Giuseppe Meazza in joint-fourth place and the former Italy international admitted that he feels capable of overhauling the legendary duo.
"[Moving up to sixth] means that I'm fine, that's I'm playing well," the attacker told Gazzetta dello Sport.
"When you break records and reach certain goals, you immediately want to achieve others. I now have two great champions just ahead of me...
"My desire to play and show my quality on the pitch has really returned."
Di Natale added that Andrea Stramaccioni's arrival as Udinese coach last summer also played a part in his decision to postpone his retirement.
"We've created a great relationship with Stramaccioni," he added. "He is just one year older than I am and and we speak about everything.
"He has given me a lot and I have helped him to understand this club and its atmosphere."
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