Gianluigi Buffon - Wikipedia

italian association football musician
For early people named Buffon, see Buffon ( disambiguation )
Gianluigi Buffon ( italian pronunciation : [ dʒanluˈiːdʒi bufˈfɔn, -ˈfon ] ; born 28 January 1978 ) is an italian professional football player who captains and plays as a goalkeeper for the Serie B club Parma. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, [ nota bene 1 ] and by some as the greatest ever. [ nota bene 2 ] He is one of the few recorded players to have made over 1,100 professional career appearances.

Reading: Gianluigi Buffon – Wikipedia

At club level, Buffon ‘s professional career began with Parma in 1995, where he made his Serie A introduction. He soon broke into the starting line-up and earned a reputation as one of the most bright young goalkeepers in Italy, helping Parma to win the Coppa Italia, the UEFA Cup and the Supercoppa Italiana in 1999. After joining Juventus in 2001, for the world phonograph record fee for a goalkeeper of €52 million at the time, Buffon won Serie A titles in both of his first two seasons at the club, and established himself as one of the best players in the populace in his position. In his first spell at Juventus, he won a read nine Serie A titles, [ nota bene 3 ] four Coppa Italias, and five Supercoppa Italianas. He was the first goalkeeper to win the Serie A Footballer of the Year prize, and was named Serie A Goalkeeper of the year a record twelve times. After reaching the 2015 and 2017 UEFA Champions League finals, he was named to the Champions League Squad of the Season on both occasions, and won the inaugural The Best FIFA Goalkeeper award in the latter year. After 17 years with Juventus, Buffon signed with french club Paris Saint-Germain at the age of 40 in 2018, where he was used in a rotational function with Alphonse Areola ; he won the Trophée des Champions and the Ligue 1 deed in his lone season with the team, before returning to Juventus the following class. During the 2019–20 season, Buffon served primarily as a back-up to Wojciech Szczęsny, but still managed to break Paolo Maldini ‘s record of 647 appearances in Serie A, as he won a record one-tenth Serie A title with the club. The following season he continued to serve as a back-up, but started in the Coppa Italia, winning his record sixth entitle. In June 2021, he returned to his boyhood club Parma, who were relegated to Serie B for that season. With 176 international caps, Buffon is the most cap actor in the history of the Italy national team, the seventh-most capped footballer of all time ( joint with Hossam Hassan ), and the third-most capped european international player ever ; Buffon besides holds the record for most appearances for Italy as captain after he inherited the armband in 2010. Buffon was called up for a record of five FIFA World Cup tournaments ( in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 ) after making his debut in 1997 ; he was an fresh ersatz in the 1998 edition. He was the starting goalkeeper of the police squad that won the 2006 tournament, being awarded the Golden Glove as the contest ‘s best goalkeeper. He besides represented Italy at four european Championships, at the 1996 Olympics, and at two FIFA Confederations Cups, winning a bronze decoration in the 2013 version of the tournament. Following his performances during the 2006 World Cup, where he kept a criminal record five clean sheets, Buffon won the Yashin Award and was elected to the team of the Tournament, an respect he besides received from UEFA after reaching the quarter-finals of the 2008 and the final examination of the 2012 european Championship. Buffon retired from external football in 2017, after Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup ; although he reversed this decision to play in the team ‘s friendlies the follow year, he officially confirmed his international retirement in May 2018. Buffon was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 tilt of the worldly concern ‘s greatest survive players in 2004. He is the lone goalkeeper to win the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year award, which he achieved after reaching the 2003 UEFA Champions League Final ; he besides won UEFA ‘s award for best goalkeeper that year, and was additionally voted into the UEFA Team of the year on five occasions. Buffon was the runner-up for the Ballon d’Or in 2006, and was elected part of the FIFPro World11 three times. He was the first always goalkeeper to win the Golden Foot Award, and was besides named the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper a record five times ( aboard Iker Casillas and Manuel Neuer ) ; he would go on to be named the best goalkeeper of the twenty-first century, of the past 25 years and of the ten by the like administration .

early on liveliness [edit ]

Buffon was born in Carrara, Tuscany, although he is of friulian origin, from Latisana. [ 24 ] [ 25 ] He was born into a sport family : his mother Maria Stella Masocco was three times italian champion in shoot put and discus throw, [ 26 ] his uncle Dante Masocco was a basketball player who played in the italian Serie A1, his beget Adriano besides practiced shoot invest, [ 26 ] and his sisters Guendalina and Veronica were professional volleyball players. [ 26 ] He is a relative of Lorenzo Buffon, goalkeeper for Milan, Genoa, Inter, Fiorentina and the italian national team : Lorenzo is second cousin of Gianluigi ‘s grandfather. [ 26 ] [ 27 ] In June 2017, he received honorary citizenship from the city of Latisana. [ 25 ]

Club career [edit ]

Parma [edit ]

1991–1995 : Youth career and early professional career [edit ]

“ I ‘ve never seen a debut like his for the personality and quality he showed. ”

—Former goalkeeper and coach Dino Zoff on Buffon ‘s debut. [ 28 ]
Despite offers from Bologna and Milan, [ 29 ] Buffon began his career with the Parma youth system in 1991, at the age of 13. [ 30 ] During his meter in the youth academy, he initially played in several out-field positions, in especial as a midfielder, before switching to his current status of goalkeeper. [ 31 ] [ 32 ] His paragon Thomas N’Kono inspired this change of place due to his celebrated goalkeeping performances for Cameroon at the 1990 World Cup in Italy ; as a result, when both of the Parma youth team ‘s keepers on the spur of the moment suffered injuries, Buffon was called upon ascribable to his interest, height and physical attributes. [ 31 ] [ 33 ] [ 34 ] He quickly adapted to this role, and within two weeks he had been promoted to first custodian of the Parma youth team. [ 29 ] [ 31 ] Ermes Fulgoni, the academy ‘s goalkeeping coach, would soon become a mentor to the young goalkeeper. [ 29 ] After an initial call-up to train with the inaugural team during the summer of 1994, [ 29 ] Buffon was promoted to the aged squad in 1995, and at the age of 17 years, 295 days, he made his Serie A debut for Parma under Nevio Scala, keeping a fairly sheet in a 0–0 dwelling draw against eventual Serie A Champions Milan, on 19 November 1995. [ 30 ] Buffon made celebrated saves against Ballon d’Or winners Roberto Baggio and George Weah, ampere good as Marco Simone, throughout the couple. [ 12 ] Buffon went on to make seven more beginning team appearances that temper angstrom well as one appearance in the Coppa Italia, making his introduction in the rival, as Parma were eliminated in the second round. Parma finished in sixth place in Serie A that season, qualifying for the UEFA Cup. During his clock time at Parma, he trained under goalkeeping bus Villiam Vecchi, a person to whom Buffon attributes much of his confidence, development, and achiever. [ 35 ]

1996–2001 : Making the starting eleven, early success and recognition [edit ]

In the 1996–97 Serie A season, his irregular full season with the club, Buffon was named as the starting goalkeeper ahead of Luca Bucci, and Alessandro Nista. [ 31 ] Parma finished the 1996–97 season as runner-up in Serie A, behind Juventus, qualifying for the UEFA Champions League. Buffon conceded 17 goals in 27 appearances, and his coherent performances began to gain attention in Italy. [ 31 ] Parma were once again eliminated in the second circle of the Coppa Italia and in the first gear round of the UEFA Cup that temper, where Buffon made his european debut in a 2–0 get the better of to Portuguese baseball club Vitória de Guimarães on 24 September 1996, aged 18 years, 240 days. [ 31 ] In the 1997–98 season, Parma finished in fifth place in Serie A and reached the Coppa Italia semi-finals. Buffon besides made his debut in the UEFA Champions League that season : his first appearance came in a 3–1 away win over Widzew Łódź on 13 August 1997, in the first peg of the second base qualify round, aged 19 years, 197 days, while he made his debut in the group stage in a 2–0 home victory against Galatasaray on 1 October former that class, aged 19 years, 246 days ; [ 36 ] Parma were ultimately knocked out in the beginning round of the competition, finishing second in their group, behind defending champions Borussia Dortmund. Buffon acquired his nickname “ Superman “ during the course of the season, when he stopped a penalty by Inter striker and Ballon d’Or holder Ronaldo. Buffon celebrated the keep open by showing the Parma fans a Superman T-shirt, which he was wearing underneath his jersey ; the nickname was besides a reference book to Buffon ‘s athleticism, agility and aerial ability. [ 37 ]
Buffon ( upper berth left ) with Parma during the 1998–99 season In his fourth season with the club, Buffon won his first european trophy, the UEFA Cup, [ 30 ] keeping a scavenge tabloid in the concluding against Marseille, which ended in a 3–0 succeed for Parma ; [ 38 ] he besides won the Coppa Italia with the club that season, as Parma defeated Fiorentina on away goals. [ 39 ] Parma finished fourthly in Serie A, which allowed them to reach the playoff round of the UEFA Champions League, although they were relegated to the UEFA Cup after losing to Rangers. [ 40 ] Buffon ‘s performances that season earned him his first Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year Award, equally well as the Bravo Award, [ 41 ] the trophy given to the best player under 23 years of old age in Europe. He besides placed fifth in the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper rankings, [ 42 ] and received his inaugural ever Ballon d’Or nomination. [ 43 ] In the follow season, he won his first Supercoppa Italiana title against Serie A champions Milan, [ 44 ] and Parma finished fourth in Serie A once again, tied with Inter for the final examination remain Champions League point. Parma lost 3–1 to Inter in the European playoff pit. [ 45 ] The club was knocked out in the round of 16 of both the UEFA Cup and the Coppa Italia. [ 35 ] In the 2000–01 season, Buffon helped lead Parma to another Coppa Italia Final, in which they were defeated by Fiorentina ; [ 46 ] but the team suffered a third-round elimination in the UEFA Cup. Parma besides finished the season in fourth position for the third back-to-back year, which allowed them to go through to the Champions League play-off round. [ 35 ] Buffon was voted Serie A Goalkeeper of the year for the second time in his career, and he besides placed third in the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper prize. [ 47 ] On 3 July 2001, Buffon was sold to Juventus for a world-record goalkeeper ‘s transfer fee of 100 billion lira, ( €51,645,690 ) [ 30 ] [ 48 ] [ 49 ] [ 50 ] [ 51 ] ( Or €51.956 million including other minor costs that could be capitalised ) [ 52 ] with depart of the transfer fees paid via the transfer of Jonathan Bachini to Parma for an undisclosed fee ( which saw Juventus make a capital reach of €10M, i.e. he was sold for equal to or more than €10M ). [ 48 ] [ 52 ]

Juventus [edit ]

2001–2004 : initial laterality [edit ]

Buffon transferred from Parma to Juventus on 3 July 2001 for €52 million, along with erstwhile Parma teammate Lilian Thuram, and was handed the number 1 shirt as the starting goalkeeper, replacing Edwin vanguard five hundred Sar, who was sold to Fulham. [ 53 ] [ 54 ] [ 55 ] Buffon late said that there had been an initial hypothesis for him to join Roma, but they signed Ivan Pelizzoli alternatively, and although negotiations were ongoing with Barcelona, he chose Juventus because his beget convinced him he would be probably to achieve his ambition of winning the Scudetto. [ 56 ] This transfer fee made Buffon Juventus ‘ most expensive purchase ever, a record which was broken in 2016 by the skill of Gonzalo Higuaín. [ 57 ] [ 58 ] [ 59 ] Buffon made his Juventus debut during the first step match of the 2001–02 Serie A season, on 26 August 2001, keeping a uninfected sheet in a 4–0 home succeed over Venezia. [ 60 ] He kept two more clean sheets [ 53 ] until he was beaten by Massimo Marazzina in a 3–2 home win over Chievo on the fourth match-day. [ 61 ] He made his Juventus Champions League introduction on 18 September, in a 3–2 home win over Celtic. [ 36 ] In his beginning season with Juventus, Buffon appeared in 45 official matches, helping his team to the Serie A title, as Juventus finished the season with the best defensive structure in Italy, with Buffon only conceding 22 goals in 34 Serie A matches. [ 62 ] Juventus besides finished as runner-up in the Coppa Italia that season to Buffon ‘s erstwhile cabaret, Parma ; Buffon merely made one appearance in the rival. Juventus were eliminated in the second gear group stage of the UEFA Champions League. Despite coming under criticism in the media for some errors early on on in the temper, in finical against Chievo, [ 53 ] [ 63 ] Buffon was awarded his third Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year Award at the end of the season for his performances throughout the year, and he was nominated for the UEFA Team of the year for the first time in his career, losing out to Rüştü Reçber. [ 64 ] At the begin of the 2002–03 season, Juventus won the 2002 Supercoppa Italiana against Parma. [ 65 ] Buffon had a dominant class, totalling 47 appearances in all competitions, of which 32 were in Serie A. He helped Juventus to the UEFA Champions League Final, alone for his team to lose in a penalty shoot-out to Milan after a 0–0 draw at Old Trafford following extra time. Buffon managed to save two penalties, but Milan won the gunfight 3–2. [ 30 ] Buffon drew praise for making a chemical reaction save from a close-range header by Filippo Inzaghi in the final examination during regulation time, [ 66 ] which he by and by described as the most unmanageable save of his career in his 2008 autobiography, [ 67 ] and as one of the most beautiful in 2014. [ 68 ] Buffon saved a Luís Figo punishment in the second peg of the semi-finals, against defending champions Real Madrid, in Turin. Juventus progressed to the final examination, winning 4–3 on aggregate. [ 69 ] Juventus managed to celebrate their second back-to-back Serie A title that season, finishing the season with the best defense so far again, as Buffon conceded entirely 23 goals in 32 appearances. In 2003, Buffon received the Serie A Goalkeeper of the class for the fourthly clock time. He besides became the lone goalkeeper ever to win the now defunct UEFA Most Valuable Player or UEFA Club Footballer of the Year award. He besides won the UEFA Best Goalkeeper award, and was elected to the UEFA Team of the year for the first time. [ 70 ] [ 71 ] He was besides named the IFFHS World ‘s Best goalkeeper for the first base time in his career. [ 72 ] Buffon was besides nominated for the 2003 Ballon d’Or that season, finishing in ninth place. [ 73 ] Buffon began the 2003–04 season with Juventus by defeating Milan on penalties in the 2003 Supercoppa Italiana, with Buffon saving a punishment in the gunfight, after a 1–1 hook. [ 74 ] Juventus were eliminated in the round of 16 of the Champions League that season by Deportivo de La Coruña and finished the Serie A season in a disappoint one-third place, although they managed to reach the Coppa Italia Final. Buffon made his hundredth appearance for Juventus that temper on 30 September 2003 in a 2–1 away win over Olympiacos in the group stage of the Champions League. [ 61 ] He was named by Pelé as one of the acme 125 greatest live footballers in March 2004, [ 75 ] but missed out on the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year prize, which went to Milan ‘s league-winning goalkeeper Dida. He was once again elected as the Goalkeeper for the UEFA Team of the year and as the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper. [ 76 ] Buffon besides received his first always FIFA World Player of the Year nominating speech in 2004, finishing in 21st rate aboard countryman Paolo Maldini .

2004–2006 : Calciopoli and relegation [edit ]

In the summer of 2004, Marcello Lippi left Juventus to take agitate of the Italy national team and was replaced by Fabio Capello. In his fourth season with the club, Buffon made 38 appearances in Serie A and 48 in all competitions that season as he won his third Serie A title in four years with Juventus, winning once again the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year award for the fifth clock in his career. Juventus were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, against eventual winners Liverpool, and in 2005, Buffon was nominated for the UEFA Team of the year for the fourthly consecutive year. [ 31 ] [ 64 ] In August 2005, Buffon collided with Milan midfielder Kaká during the annual preseason Trofeo Luigi Berlusconi match, suffering a disjointed shoulder that required surgery. [ 77 ] Milan loaned backup goalkeeper Christian Abbiati to Juventus as recompense while Buffon recovered. [ 78 ] Buffon returned to the Juventus starting line-up in November, but injury again sidelined him until January. [ 78 ] He recovered in time to help Juventus win their second consecutive Scudetto and his fourth overall, returning to the starting line-up in January 2006, in a Coppa Italia match against Fiorentina. [ 79 ] Juventus were once again knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Champions League by runner-up Arsenal, and in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia on away goals to eventual runner-up Roma. Buffon was named IFFHS World ‘s Best goalkeeper for the third time in his career [ 76 ] and Serie A Goalkeeper of the year for the sixth clock. He was besides placed second in the 2006 Ballon d’Or and eighth in the FIFA World Player of the Year Award behind his winning Italy teammate Fabio Cannavaro, and was elected as the starting goalkeeper for both the 2006 FIFPro XI and the UEFA Team of the Year, following his fifth consecutive nominating speech. [ 64 ] [ 80 ] Buffon made his two-hundredth appearance for Juventus that season in a 2–0 away get the better of at the hands of Arsenal in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. [ 61 ] On 12 May 2006, several players, including Buffon, were accused of participating in illegal bet on Serie A matches. Buffon voluntarily co-operated, allowing himself to be interrogated by Turin magistrates. While admitting that he did put bets on sporting matches ( until regulations went into effect in late 2005, banning players from doing so ), he vehemently denied placing wagers on italian football matches. [ 81 ] Despite concerns that he had jeopardised his chance of playing for Italy in the 2006 World Cup, he was formally named Italy ‘s starting goalkeeper on 15 May and helped Italy to win their fourthly title. [ 30 ] Buffon was cleared of all charges by the italian Football Federation ( FIGC ) on 27 June 2007. Following Juventus ‘ punishment in the Calciopoli scandal, in which their two most late Serie A titles were stripped and the squad were relegated to Serie B and penalised with a degree deduction, rumours spread that Buffon would be placed on the transfer market. [ 82 ] Buffon elected to remain with Juventus, despite the team ‘s relegation, [ 30 ] [ 83 ] a decision which made him highly popular with the Juventus fans. [ 84 ]

2006–2011 : Serie B champions, Serie A return and post-Calciopoli struggles [edit ]

“ Buffon is one of the greatest and best goalkeepers in football history. When Juventus were in Serie B, he showed himself to be faithful to the team, it was a capital gesture. ”

—Former Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes. [ 6 ]
During the 2006–07 Serie B season, Buffon made his introduction in the italian second division in a 1–1 away string against Rimini on 9 September 2006 ; [ 85 ] later that year, he besides received the beginning crimson circuit board of his career in a 1–1 away draw against AlbinoLeffe on 18 November. [ 79 ] [ 86 ] In total he made 37 league appearances throughout the season. [ 30 ] After Juventus won the Serie B claim, [ 30 ] earning promotion to Serie A for the 2007–08 temper, Buffon signed a narrow extension with Juventus until 2012. [ 79 ] [ 87 ] In 2007, Buffon was besides elected as the goalkeeper for the 2007 FIFPro XI for the second consecutive class, [ 88 ] and the IFFHS World ‘s Best goalkeeper for a record-breaking fourth clock time. [ 76 ]
Buffon was a key player for Juventus in the 2007–08 season, their first gear back in the top flight, as he helped Juventus to a third-place finish up, and Champions League qualification. Juventus lost to runner-up Inter in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals. Buffon produced 94 saves in 34 league appearances [ 89 ] and was named Serie A Goalkeeper of the year for the seventh meter in his career. Buffon was besides nominated for the 2008 Ballon d’Or for the sixth straight time in his career since 2003, [ 90 ] and the FIFA World Player of the Year Award. [ 91 ] During this temper, Buffon began to suffer problems with his back, caused by a herniated disk, which frequently keep him sidelined during the adjacent few seasons. [ 79 ] On 10 March 2008, Buffon renewed his condense until 2013, expressing his desire to win everything with the cabaret. [ 79 ] In the 2008–09 temper, Buffon was once again sidelined by several injuries. [ 92 ] From September through January, substitute goalkeeper Alexander Manninger held his position between the sticks, gaining praise for his depute. [ 93 ] due to recurring injuries, Manninger ‘s performances and Juventus ‘ hapless form towards the end of the temper ( as Buffon was seen despondent whilst the team drew with both Lecce and Atalanta ), there were promote rumours that Buffon was displeased and wanted to separate ways with the cabaret. [ 94 ] He admitted he was disappointed with the stream results, but assured that he had no purpose of leaving. After a discussion with management, he said he was reassured about the club ‘s future and signed a sign extension to 2013. Buffon and Juventus finished the season on a high notice, with two victories, finishing in irregular place behind Internazionale. They were knocked out of the Coppa Italia semi-finals by eventual champions Lazio and of the Champions League in the round of 16 by Chelsea. Buffon was nominated for the FIFA World Player of the class in 2009 for the one-sixth back-to-back season since first being nominated in 2004. Buffon made his three-hundredth appearance for Juventus in a 3–3 family draw against Chievo in 2009. [ 61 ] Juventus and Buffon began the 2009–10 temper powerfully, although the police squad suffered a austere dip in form as they were eliminated from the Champions League, finishing third in their group. They were subsequently eliminated in the Round of 16 of the Europa League against Fulham. Juventus were knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia to eventual champions Inter, and finished the Serie A season in a disappointing seventh place, merely qualifying for the 2010–11 Europa League through the playoff beat. Buffon was much sidelined that temper, due to several recurring injuries. [ 95 ] In 2010, Buffon was voted goalkeeper of the ten by IFFHS. [ 96 ] Buffon did not play for the first half of the 2010–11 season as he was recovering from operating room after an injury he endured to his sciatic heart during the 2010 World Cup, and he was replaced by his newly deputy, Marco Storari. [ 78 ] Juventus were knocked out of the Europa League group stage, the Coppa Italia in the quarter-finals and finished the Serie A season in seventh place, failing to qualify for Europe, [ 97 ] the first time since the 1990–91 season .

2011–2014 : New era of authority in Serie A [edit ]

During the 2011–12 season under newly director and former cabaret midfielder Antonio Conte, [ 98 ] Juventus were once again a dominating storm in Serie A. Buffon re-found his form, and made numerous celebrated saves throughout the season, including stopping a penalty kick from Francesco Totti, which enabled Juventus to capture a crucial draw against Roma at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. [ 99 ] Buffon ‘s ticket form at the end of the first half of the season saw elected Juventus ‘ Player of the Month in December 2011 by fans. [ 100 ] Buffon kept his fifteenth cleanse plane of the season in Juventus ‘ victory over rivals Inter in the Derby d’Italia ; [ 101 ] after the match, he was described as “ the best goalkeeper in Italy and credibly the World ”. [ 101 ] Juventus finished the season unbeaten, [ 30 ] winning their first base Scudetto since the Calciopoli scandal, and qualifying for the 2012–13 Champions League after a biennial absence. Buffon described it as the second highest point of his career, after the 2006 World Cup victory. [ 102 ] Playing behind a potent three-man defensive line under Conte ‘s newly established 3–5–2 formation, made up predominantly of Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci and Andrea Barzagli, [ 103 ] Buffon obtained a league record of 21 cleanse sheets in Serie A, [ 104 ] [ 105 ] and only conceded a personal good of 16 goals from 35 appearances ( an average of 0.46 goals per game ), as Juventus finished the season with the best defense in Italy, [ 106 ] and became the European team with the second-best refutation that season, after Porto. [ 107 ] Buffon made 81 saves in Serie A that season [ 108 ] [ 109 ] and his 82 % save percentage was the highest of any goalkeeper act in one of Europe ‘s five major leagues. [ 110 ] [ 111 ] Buffon was included in the 2011–12 Serie A Team of the year for his performances. [ 112 ] Juventus besides made the Coppa Italia concluding that season, [ 113 ] although Buffon did not play in this competition .
Buffon ( clear right ) playing for Juventus in the 2012–13 season On 11 August 2012, Buffon lifted his first trophy as the raw Juventus captain, following Alessandro Del Piero ‘s deviation as Juventus defeated Napoli 4–2 in extra time in the 2012 Supercoppa Italiana in Beijing. [ 114 ] Buffon suffered a minor injury and missed the inaugural Serie A match of the 2012–13 season against Parma on 25 August 2012. [ 115 ] He returned to the starting line-up for the adjacent match against Udinese in Udine on 2 September, wearing the captain ‘s armband ; [ 116 ] Juventus won the match 4–1. [ 117 ] On 20 September, in Juventus ‘ first Champions League match of the season against defending champions Chelsea, Buffon made his four-hundredth appearance for Juventus ; the pit ended in a 2–2 away trace. [ 118 ] Buffon obtained his first clean sheet of the season in a 2–0 home win against Chievo on 22 September. [ 119 ] Buffon was nominated for the 2012 FIFA Ballon d’Or and the 2012 UEFA Team of the year following his performances throughout the calendar year. [ 120 ] He obtained his beginning Champions League clean sail, against Nordsjælland, on 7 November, a couple which Juve won 4–0 at Juventus Stadium. [ 121 ] He besides kept clean sheets as Juventus meter defending champions Chelsea 3–0 at home, [ 122 ] and Shakhtar Donetsk 1–0 away from home, on Buffon ‘s hundredth club appearance in european competitions. Juventus topped their group undefeated, and advanced to the hard stages for foremost time since 2008–09. [ 123 ] Buffon kept a blank tabloid in a 1–0 Coppa Italia winnings against Cagliari on 12 December, allowing Juventus to progress to the quarter-finals of the tournament. [ 124 ] On 16 December, Juventus defeated Atalanta 3–0, allowing Juventus to once again claim the unofficial claim of “ Serie A Winter Champions ”, with the best defense in Serie A, having only conceded ten goals in 17 matches. This was besides Buffon ‘s twentieth blank sail in 2012, the most of any other goalkeeper in Europe. [ 125 ] [ 126 ] Buffon was voted moment in the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper award, behind Iker Casillas, and was named as goalkeeper of the century by the same organization. [ 127 ] [ 128 ] On 23 January 2013, Buffon signed a contract extension with Juventus, keeping him at the club until 2015. [ 129 ] On 27 January 2013, Buffon was awarded the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year prize for the eighth time in his career. [ 130 ] Juventus retained their Serie A title that season, and finished the league with the best defense, as Buffon conceded just 19 goals. The league victory allowed Buffon to lift the Serie A trophy as captain for the first time. Juventus were eliminated in the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia to winners Lazio, and in the quarter-finals of the Champions League to winners Bayern Munich. [ 30 ] On 18 August 2013, Juventus began the 2013–14 season by defending their Supercoppa Italiana entitle, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Juventus defeated Lazio 4–0, with Buffon keeping a clean and jerk sheet in the contest for the first gear time ; Buffon was praised for making several saves. [ 131 ] [ 132 ] On 24 November, Buffon made his five-hundredth appearance in Serie A, keeping a clean and jerk tabloid in a 2–0 away win against Livorno. [ 133 ] On 6 December, Buffon recorded his one-seventh straight fairly plane, and his ninth of the season ; as a result, he bettered his previous personal phonograph record of 568 minutes without conceding a finish in Serie A, going 640 minutes without being beaten in the italian League. [ 134 ] Buffon was finally beaten by Maximiliano Moralez in a 4–1 winnings over Atalanta, after going 745 minutes without conceding a goal in Serie A, and equalling Luca Marchegiani ‘s sixth-best unbeaten streak in Serie A history. [ 135 ] Buffon was nominated for the 2013 FIFPro XI and the 2013 Ballon d’Or for his performances throughout the calendar year. [ 136 ] In 2013, Buffon was once again named the second best goalkeeper in the world by IFFHS, behind Manuel Neuer. [ 137 ] His performances earned him the Juventus player of the calendar month award for December 2013. [ 138 ] On 16 March 2014, Buffon saved the twentieth penalty of his career in a 1–0 away win over Genoa, equalising Dino Zoff ‘s 476 appearances for Juventus as the baseball club ‘s one-fifth all-time appearance holder. [ 139 ] [ 140 ] Buffon lifted the Serie A title for the third consecutive year, captaining the team to their 30th league claim. [ 141 ] During the 2013–14 season, Juventus managed an Italian-record of 102 points, including a Serie A record of 33 victories ; Juventus finished with the best defense of the league, so far again. Buffon managed 89 saves and 18 clean sheets in 33 appearances during the Serie A season, and conceded 19 goals. [ 142 ] [ 143 ] Juventus were eliminated in the group phase of the Champions League, although they late managed to reach the semi-finals of the Europa League, losing to Benfica. Buffon was chosen as part of the 2013–14 Europa League Team of the Season for his performances throughout the tournament. [ 144 ] On 1 July 2014, Buffon signed a contract extension that would keep him at the golf club until 2017. [ 145 ]

2014–15 : second Champions League Final and first Coppa Italia with Juventus [edit ]

“ He is a benchmark for me, and for every custodian of my generation. When I started playing, I had a ambition – I dreamed of becoming like him, and every time I play against him it ‘s a real pleasure. ”

—former captain and goalkeeper for both Real Madrid and Spain Iker Casillas on Buffon and his five-hundredth appearance with Juventus. [ 13 ]
In the summer of 2014, coach Antonio Conte left Juventus to take charge of the Italy home team, with former Milan director Massimiliano Allegri called in as his replacement. Juve opened the 2014–15 season with a 1–0 aside win over Chievo, with Buffon keeping a clean sail and saving from Maxi López in the second one-half. [ 146 ] On 27 September, Buffon saved a Germán Denis penalty in a 3–0 away win over Atalanta, helping Juventus to keep their fifth back-to-back uninfected sheet in Serie A. He was finally beaten by a Francesco Totti penalty in a 3–2 home win over Roma on 5 October after going unbeaten for 616 minutes that season. [ 147 ] [ 148 ] Including the previous season, Buffon managed to go 801 minutes in entire without conceding a league goal ; at the time, this record had alone been bettered by Dino Zoff and Sebastiano Rossi. [ 149 ] On 29 October, Buffon made his five-hundredth appearance for Juventus in a 1–0 away personnel casualty to Genoa. [ 150 ] On 1 November 2014, Buffon made his four-hundredth League appearance with Juventus ( 37 of which were in Serie B, and 363 of which were in Serie A ), keeping a clean sheet in a 2–0 away win over Empoli. [ 151 ] On 24 November, Buffon was nominated for the 2014 FIFPro World XI for a criminal record tenth time. He is presently the only goalkeeper to have been nominated for the prize every class since its origin in 2005. [ 152 ] The same week, Buffon was besides nominated for the UEFA Team of the Year. [ 153 ]
Buffon playing for Juventus in 2014. On 15 December 2014, Buffon was named Serie A Goalkeeper of the class for the one-ninth fourth dimension in his career, and was elected to the 2014 Serie A Team of the Year. [ 154 ] On 22 December, Juventus were defeated by Napoli in the 2014 Supercoppa Italiana 8–7 on penalties, following a 2–2 draw after extra time. Although Buffon made several saves during the match, and managed to stop three penalties in the shoot-out, he was ineffective to prevent his team from losing the claim. [ 155 ] [ 156 ] Buffon placed fourth in the 2014 IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper Award, behind Manuel Neuer, Thibaut Courtois and Keylor Navas ; this was the 15th back-to-back year in which he had been named as one of the earth ‘s top five goalkeepers. [ 157 ] [ 158 ] [ 159 ] On 15 February 2015, Buffon surpassed Gaetano Scirea as the Juventus musician with the second most minutes played in Serie A, behind entirely Giampiero Boniperti. [ 160 ] On 2 March 2015, Buffon equalled Scirea as the Juventus actor with the third most appearances in Serie A, behind only Boniperti and Del Piero. [ 161 ] [ 162 ] He former surpassed Scirea on 14 March, making his 378th Serie A appearance with Juventus in a 1–0 away win over Palermo. [ 163 ] After keeping a clean sheet in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Monaco on 22 April, Buffon overtook Dida as the goalkeeper with the fourth-highest number of clean sheets in Champions League history, with 36. [ 164 ] On 26 April, Buffon made his 528th appearance for Juventus in all competitions, equalling Giuseppe Furino as the actor with third-most appearances for the club ; he overtook Furino on 29 April. [ 165 ] On 2 May, Buffon kept a houseclean tabloid in a 1–0 aside win over Sampdoria, as Juventus won their fourth straight Serie A title. [ 166 ] On 13 May, Buffon produced a man of the catch performance as Juventus drew 1–1 with real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in the irregular leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final, only being beaten by a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty ; the result allowed Buffon to progress to his irregular career Champions League concluding with Juventus, 12 years after his last appearance. [ 167 ] On 20 May, he won his first Coppa Italia style with Juventus, despite not featuring throughout the tournament that season. [ 168 ] On 23 May, in his 900th career appearance, [ 169 ] Buffon saved a Lorenzo Insigne penalty in a 3–1 home win over Napoli in Serie A. [ 170 ] Buffon captained Juventus in the 2015 Champions League final examination as the Turin club were defeated 3–1 by Barcelona at Berlin ‘s Olympiastadion. [ 171 ] Buffon made the most saves throughout the tournament ( 39 ), [ 172 ] and kept the most clean sheets ( 6 ), along with Danijel Subašić, Manuel Neuer and Marc-André ter Stegen. [ 173 ] He was named to the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League Team of the Season for his performances throughout the tournament. [ 174 ] On 15 July 2015, Buffon was named to the ten-man shortlist for the 2015 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. [ 175 ] His spare on Dani Alves in the Champions League final was besides nominated for the UEFA Save of the Season Award, finishing on a tied third-place in the vote. [ 176 ]

2015–16 : Fifth consecutive Scudetto and record Serie A unbeaten mottle [edit ]

On 8 August, Buffon kept a clean plane as Juventus defeated Lazio 2–0 in the 2015 Supercoppa Italiana to win the deed for a record seventh time. This was besides Buffon ‘s record one-sixth title, and his fifth with Juventus. [ 177 ] On 12 August, it was announced that he placed fourth in the 2015 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. [ 178 ] Buffon was named the first Juventus Player of the Month of the 2015–16 season for September by fans after a series of reproducible performances. [ 179 ] On 21 October 2015, Buffon overtook Alessandro Del Piero ‘s record for most minutes played with Juventus in the 73rd minute of Juventus ‘ 0–0 dwelling draw against Borussia Mönchengladbach, in the Champions League group stagecoach. [ 180 ] In the return group fastness against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 3 November, he made his hundredth Champions League appearance, which ended in a 1–1 disembowel. [ 181 ] On 21 November, he made his 552nd appearance for Juventus in a 1–0 home succeed over Milan, equalling Scirea as the club ‘s second-highest appearance holder in all competitions, behind entirely Alessandro Del Piero. [ 182 ] The follow week, Buffon was nominated for the 2015 UEFA Team of the Year, [ 183 ] besides making his hundredth appearance for Juventus in european Club Competitions in a 1–0 home gain over Manchester City on 25 November. [ 184 ] The following day, Buffon was included in the 55-player shortlist for the 2015 FIFPro World XI, [ 185 ] despite having previously been omitted from the list of candidates for the 2015 FIFA Ballon d’Or. [ 186 ] On 4 December 2015, Buffon made his four-hundredth Serie A appearance with Juventus in a 2–0 away win over Lazio. [ 187 ] For his performances throughout the previous season, Buffon was named Serie A Goalkeeper of the year for the one-tenth time in his career on 14 December, and subsequently to the 2015 Serie A Team of the Year. [ 188 ] Later that month, he was named one of the three finalists for the Globe Soccer Player of the Year Award. [ 189 ] On 6 January 2016, he placed second in the 2015 IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper Award, once again behind Manuel Neuer. [ 190 ]

“ Watching him close-up in trail and during games is truly quite impressive. Weaknesses ? He has none. ”

— Andrea Pirlo on Buffon. [ 191 ]
On 28 February 2016, Buffon kept his one-eighth consecutive clean sail in Serie A in a 2–0 succeed over Inter. In the summons, he set a newly personal estimable in the top flight, and the instantaneously sixth-best unbeaten streak in the history of the Italian league, after going 746 minutes without conceding a goal in Serie A, overtaking Morgan De Sanctis and Marchegiani. [ 192 ] In the be league equal against Atalanta on 6 March, he extended his unbeaten commemorate by keeping another fairly tabloid in a 2–0 away succeed, besides equalling Dino Zoff ‘s and Sebastiano Rossi ‘s league commemorate of nine straight clean sheets in Serie A. His unbeaten streak of 836 minutes without conceding a goal was the third gear best unbeaten streak in Serie A history, behind only Zoff and Rossi, and was besides the longest period a goalkeeper has gone without conceding a goal since three points for a acquire were introduced in Serie A during the 1994–95 season. [ 193 ] [ 194 ] He overtook Zoff in a 1–0 home victory over Sassuolo on 11 March, achieving a league record 10 consecutive clean sheets, and extended his unbeaten stripe to 926 minutes without conceding a goal, lone three minutes behind the all-time record holder, Rossi ; [ 195 ] the last time he had conceded a finish was when he was beaten by Antonio Cassano, in the 64th infinitesimal of a 2–1 away win over Sampdoria, on 10 January 2016. [ 196 ] [ 197 ] Buffon surpassed Rossi ‘s record of 929 minutes by 45 minutes in a 4–1 away win over inter-city rivals Torino on 20 March, besides surpassing Gianpiero Combi ‘s italian league record unbeaten streak of 934 minutes in the process ; [ nb 4 ] he set the new all-time record at 974 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal. Andrea Belotti ultimately ended his scoreless streak by beating him from the penalty spot in the 48th minute of the lapp peer. [ 201 ] [ 202 ] On 24 April, Buffon saved a recently penalty from Nikola Kalinić to secure a 2–1 away victory over Fiorentina, [ 203 ] his 13th penalty salvage in Serie A ; [ 204 ] following Napoli ‘s defeat against Roma the following sidereal day, Juventus clinched their record fifth back-to-back Serie A championship with three games at hand. [ 203 ] [ 205 ] In addition to his critical saves and record break unbeaten streak, [ 201 ] [ 206 ] [ 207 ] Buffon was praised for his leadership, and his function in motivating the team following their frustration against Sassuolo on 28 October 2015, as Juventus subsequently went on a 25-match unbeaten streak to come back from 12th place after ten matches to win the title. [ 206 ] [ 208 ] [ 209 ] For his key performances in helping Juventus capture the league style, Buffon was named the Juventus Player of the Month for April 2016. [ 210 ] On 11 May, Buffon extended his narrow until the end of the 2017–18 temper. [ 211 ] Throughout the 2015–16 season, Buffon had managed to equal his personal well of 21 scavenge sheets in a single league season, and was voted Juventus ‘ Player of the Season. [ 212 ] On 18 July, Buffon was included in the ten-man short list for the 2016 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award, [ 213 ] in which he finished sixth. [ 214 ]

2016–17 : record one-sixth straight Scudetto and third Champions League Final [edit ]

On 11 October 2016, Buffon became the first gear goalkeeper ever to win the Golden Foot Award. Following his performances throughout the year, Buffon was included in the 30-man shortlist for the 2016 Ballon d’Or ; [ 216 ] he placed ninth aboard Pepe in the final rate. [ 217 ] In Juventus ‘ one-fourth Champions League group match of the temper on 2 November, a 1–1 base draw against Lyon, Buffon made his hundredth Champions League appearance ( excluding appearances in qualifying rounds ), becoming the 29th player to reach this landmark. [ 218 ] On 4 November, he was included in the 23-player short list for The 2016 Best FIFA Men ‘s Player Award. [ 219 ] On 6 November, Buffon earned his 600th Serie A appearance in a 2–1 away win against Chievo, the one-fourth musician to reach this milestone. [ 220 ] His performances saw him earn the Juventus Player of the Month Award for October 2016. [ 221 ] On 21 November, Buffon was nominated for the UEFA Team of the year for the one-ninth meter his career, making him goalkeeper with the most nominations ever, aboard Iker Casillas. [ 222 ] On 1 December, Buffon was nominated for the 2016 FIFPro World XI, making him the lone player, aboard Cristiano Ronaldo, to have been included in the short list every class since its origin in 2005. [ 223 ] On 23 December, Buffon made his 600th competitive appearance for Juventus in the 2016 Supercoppa Italiana ; following a 1–1 hook after extra time, Juventus lost 4–3 to Milan in a penalty shoot-out, although Buffon saved Gianluca Lapadula ‘s initial spot complain. [ 224 ] Buffon capped off the class by placing irregular in the 2016 IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper Award, finishing behind Neuer once again. [ 225 ] On 5 January 2017, Buffon was named to the 2016 UEFA Team of the year, becoming the oldest player ever to be named to the UEFA Team of the year ; this was besides the fourth meter he had been voted to the UEFA Team of the Year. [ 226 ] On 9 January, it was announced Buffon had placed eighth in The 2016 Best FIFA Men ‘s Player Award. [ 227 ] On 30 January, Buffon was voted Serie A Goalkeeper of the year for the 11th time, and named to the 2016 Serie A Team of the Year. [ 228 ] [ 229 ] On 17 February, Buffon made his 443rd Serie A appearance for Juventus in a 4–1 base win over Palermo, equalling Giampiero Boniperti as the baseball club ‘s all-time second highest appearance holder in the contest, behind only Del Piero. [ 230 ] On 22 February, he made his hundredth Champions League appearance for Juventus in the first leg of the club ‘s round of 16 tie against Porto, keeping a clean sheet in the 2–0 away acquire. [ 231 ] [ 232 ] On 5 March, Buffon drew floor with Totti as the joint third-highest appearance holder in Serie A after making his 612th appearance in the competition in a 1–1 away pull against Udinese. [ 233 ] On 19 March, Buffon surpassed Boniperti as the all-time minute holder for a Juventus actor in Serie A in the 66th minute of a 1–0 off win over Sampdoria. [ 234 ] On 2 April, he equalled Javier Zanetti as the joint-second highest appearance holder of all clock time in Serie A, with his 615th Serie A appearance in a 1–1 away draw against Napoli. [ 235 ] On 3 May, Buffon made his hundredth appearance for Juventus in the UEFA Champions League ( excluding appearances in the qualifying rounds ) in a 2–0 away win against Monaco, in the first leg of the semi-finals of the competition ; Buffon became only the second Italian player after Paolo Maldini to make 100 Champions League appearances for a single golf club, and marked the juncture with a clean sheet, his 47th overall in the competition, making him the goalkeeper with the third-highest number of Champions League clean sheets, aboard Čech, and behind only Casillas ( 57 ) and Van five hundred Sar ( 50 ). This was the inaugural time Juventus had managed to keep six straight clean sheets in a one edition of the tournament, the joint third-best number of back-to-back clean sheets in a individual Champions League season. [ 236 ] [ 237 ] [ 238 ] [ 239 ] [ 240 ] On 9 May, Buffon made his hundred-and-fiftieth UEFA club appearance in a 2–1 home win over Monaco in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, making him the actor with the ninth-most appearances in UEFA clubhouse matches, aboard Jamie Carragher. Juventus ‘ 4–1 win on aggregate saw Buffon reach the third Champions League final examination of his career ; Kylian Mbappé ‘s second-half goal ended Buffon ‘s scoreless stripe, which saw him set a newfangled personal well of 600 minutes without conceding a goal in the Champions League, and put him fifth on the all-time board, while Juventus ‘ overall unbeaten discharge of 690 minutes was the second-longest in the history of the competition. [ 241 ] [ 242 ] On 17 May 2017, Juventus won their 12th Coppa Italia title in a 2–0 acquire over Lazio, becoming the first gear team to win three straight cups. Buffon did not feature, as his common back-up Neto was the club ‘s starting goalkeeper in the rival. [ 243 ] Four days subsequently on 21 May, following a 3–0 win over Crotone, Juventus secured their sixth consecutive Serie A deed, establishing an all-time record of consecutive prevail in the competition ; with his eighth Serie A title, Buffon equalled Virginio Rosetta, Giovanni Ferrari, and Giuseppe Furino as the actor with the most italian league claim victories. [ 244 ] [ 245 ] [ 246 ] On 3 June 2017, Juventus entered a second gear Champions League Final in three years, and the third base final for Buffon, but were defeated 4–1 by defending champions real Madrid. [ 247 ] With his third Champions League concluding get the better of, Buffon became the player with the most Champions League concluding appearances without a Champions League decoration, aboard early Juventus teammates Paolo Montero and Alessio Tacchinardi. [ 248 ] He was named in the UEFA Champions League squad of the season for the second prison term, [ 249 ] and the tournament ‘s best goalkeeper. [ 250 ]

2017–2018 : Final temper of first spell with Juventus and one-seventh straight Scudetto [edit ]

On 12 June 2017, Buffon announced that the 2017–18 temper would likely be his last with the baseball club. [ 251 ] [ 252 ] On 4 August, Buffon was named one of the three finalists for the Goalkeeper of the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League season award, along with Manuel Neuer and Jan Oblak. [ 253 ] On 15 August, Buffon was besides listed as one of the three finalists for the 2017 UEFA Best Player of the Year Award, along with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. [ 254 ] On 19 August, Buffon made history by saving the first gear Serie A penalty awarded via VAR in a 3–0 home succeed over Cagliari in the club ‘s opening league match of the season. [ 255 ] On 24 August, he was named the best goalkeeper of the 2016–17 Champions League season, [ 250 ] He besides placed third in the UEFA Men ‘s Player of the Year Award, with 109 votes. [ 256 ] On 23 October, Buffon won the inaugural 2017 Best FIFA Goalkeeper award, [ 257 ] and was named to the FIFPro World XI for the third clock in his career ; [ 258 ] he was besides nominated for the 2017 Best FIFA Men ‘s Player Award, finishing in fourthly position in the vote. [ 259 ] [ 260 ] On 27 November, Buffon won the Serie A Footballer of the Year award, the first gear time a goalkeeper has won the prize, along with the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year award for the one-twelfth clock, while being named to the Serie A Team of the year for the fifth time in his career. On 3 December, he equalled Casillas by winning the IFFHS World ‘s Best Goalkeeper Award for a record fifth time, [ 262 ] and on 7 December, he placed fourthly in the 2017 Ballon d’Or. [ 263 ] Following Juventus ‘ 1–0 away victory against fellow title contenders Napoli on 1 December, [ 264 ] Buffon was ruled out of Juventus ‘ final Champions League group catch against Olympiacos four days subsequently, after picking up a calf strain in the previous pit, an injury which kept him sidelined for about two months ; was replaced by his deputy Wojciech Szczęsny in goal during his absence. [ 265 ] [ 266 ] On 11 January 2018, Buffon was named to the 2017 UEFA Team of the year for the one-fifth time. [ 267 ] Buffon returned to action on 30 January 2018, two days after his fortieth birthday, keeping a clean sail and saving a punishment from Alejandro Gómez to secure a 1–0 away win over Atalanta in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals ; this was his first Coppa Italia appearance in over five years, while his penalty save was the 30th of his career, excluding those made in shoot-outs, and his first ever in rule time in the competition. [ 268 ] [ 269 ] [ 270 ] [ 271 ] He made his five-hundredth league appearance with Juventus — including both Serie A and Serie B matches — on 9 February, in a 2–0 away win over Fiorentina. [ 272 ] [ 273 ] After Juventus lost 3–0 to Real Madrid at home in the first peg of the Champions League quarter-final on 3 April, Buffon helped Juventus keep a 3–0 away moderate in the second branch on 11 April, until the 93rd minute when he was sent off for dissent after a confrontation with referee Michael Oliver who awarded an injury time penalty to Real Madrid ; Szczęsny was forced to be substituted in, with the resulting penalty kick converted by Cristiano Ronaldo for a final 4–3 aggregate loss. [ 274 ] [ 275 ] On 9 May, Buffon kept a clean sail, his three-hundredth clean sheet with Juventus, and his 383rd at club level, in a 4–0 winnings over Milan in the 2018 Coppa Italia Final ; this was Juventus ‘ fourth straight Coppa Italia title. [ 276 ] [ 277 ] [ 278 ] On 11 May, Buffon was charged by UEFA over post-match comments made about referee Oliver. [ 279 ] On 13 May, Buffon won his commemorate seventh straight Scudetto, following a 0–0 draw with Roma in Juventus ‘ penultimate meet of the season while an unused stand-in ; [ 280 ] with this league victory, he became the first musician ever to win nine Serie A titles. [ nota bene 3 ] [ 281 ] [ 282 ] On 17 May, with one league pit placid left, Buffon announced in a press conference that he would leave Juventus at the end of the season. [ 283 ] On 19 May, after 17 seasons with the club, Buffon played his 656th and final examination match with Juventus, the final couple of the season at home against Hellas Verona. He started in goal, and was late substituted in the 64th infinitesimal by debutant Carlo Pinsoglio as he received a standing ovation with the grade 2–0 in privilege of Juventus ; the meet belated ended in a 2–1 victory. [ 284 ] [ 285 ] On 5 June, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body gave Buffon a three-match ban for UEFA contest matches “ for which he would be otherwise eligible ”, after his post-match comments about reviewer Oliver in the season ‘s Champions League quarter-final against very Madrid. [ 286 ] On 30 June, the final day of his Juventus narrow, Buffon bid the club farewell with a post on chirrup :

“ seventeen years in black and flannel [ officially ] end today. seventeen years of friends, team-mates, tears, victories, [ defeats, ] trophies, words, anger, disappointments, happiness and many, many emotions. I will never forget anything. I will always carry everything with me. ”Buffon on his last official day of this spell as a Juventus player in 2018[287]

Paris Saint-Germain [edit ]

On 6 July 2018, Buffon signed a annual contract, with the option for a second gear year, with Paris Saint-Germain. [ 288 ] [ 289 ] He made his competitive debut for PSG on 4 August, keeping a clean sheet in a 4–0 win against Monaco in the 2018 Trophée des Champions. [ 290 ] Buffon made his Ligue 1 debut on 12 August, keeping a clean sheet in a 3–0 home win over Caen. [ 291 ] He was used in a rotational character with Alphonse Areola during the 2018–19 season by director Thomas Tuchel. [ 292 ] [ 293 ] After serving a three-match ban in UEFA club competitions, Buffon started for PSG in a 1–1 away draw against Napoli on 6 November, and was beaten by an Insigne penalty ; at the senesce of 40 years and 282 days, he became the second-oldest musician always to make their Champions League introduction for a club after Mark Schwarzer, who made his introduction in the competition with Chelsea in a 1–0 home victory over Steaua București on 11 December 2013, aged 41 years and 65 days. [ 294 ] [ 295 ] [ 296 ] On 18 December, following an injury to Areola, Buffon played the moment half of an eventual 2–1 aside win over Orléans in the round of golf of 16 of the Coupe de la Ligue. [ 297 ] PSG were eliminated from the contest in the comply round after a surprise 2–1 base frustration to Guingamp on 9 January 2019, during which Buffon remained on the bench. [ 298 ] On 12 February, Buffon kept his fiftieth Champions League clean and jerk sheet in a 2–0 away win over Manchester United, becoming only the third goalkeeper to reach this milestone after Iker Casillas ( 57 ) and Edwin van five hundred Sar ( 51 ). He besides made his 121st Champions League appearance – excluding qualifying rounds – during the lapp equal, which made him the player with the tenth-most appearances of all time in the competition. [ 299 ] In the return leg in Paris on 6 March, Buffon came under criticism in the media for committing an error with the seduce tied 1–1, after he spilled Marcus Rashford ‘s long-range shooting, therefore allowing Romelu Lukaku to score from the rally and send United into the lead ; following an injury-time finish from a punishment by Rashford, Manchester United completed a comeback to win the match 3–1, advancing to the Champions League quarter-finals on away goals. [ 300 ] PSG finished the temper as Ligue 1 champions, [ 301 ] which saw Buffon win his tenth league title of his career, the most of any italian player. [ 302 ] PSG late lost 6–5 on penalties to Rennes in the 2019 Coupe de France Final, following a 2–2 draw after extra time, although Buffon did not appear during the final. [ 303 ] On 5 June, it was confirmed that he was leaving the club after one season. [ 304 ]

return to Juventus [edit ]

2019–2021 : record-breaking appearances [edit ]

Buffon with Juventus in 2019 On 4 July 2019, after a season away from Juventus, Buffon signed a annual contract with the club. [ 305 ] [ 306 ] Upon arrival, he was offered the number 1 shirt by Wojciech Szczęsny and the captainship by Giorgio Chiellini, but he turned them down, saying “ I did n’t come back to take something from person or take it back … I barely want to do my piece for the team ”. [ 307 ] alternatively, he chose to wear number 77 ; the lapp number he had worn during his concluding season at Parma, before joining Juventus in 2001. [ 307 ] He made his first appearance since his return to the club on 21 September, in a 2–1 home gain over Verona in Serie A ; this was his 902nd career golf club appearance, which equalled Paolo Maldini ‘s commemorate as the italian actor with the most career club appearances. [ 308 ] On 28 September, he overtook Maldini with his 903rd appearance in a 2–0 home win over SPAL in Serie A. [ 309 ] On 30 October 2019, Buffon made his 513th league appearance for Juventus ( including Serie B matches ) in a 2–1 home acquire over Genoa in Serie A, equalling Del Piero as the actor with the most league appearances for the club. [ 310 ] On 11 December, he kept his 51st Champions League clean sheet ( excluding those in the qualifying rounds ) in a 2–0 away win over Bayer Leverkusen in Juventus ‘ final examination group match of the campaign, equalling Van five hundred Sar as the goalkeeper with the second-most clean sheets always in the competition, behind only Iker Casillas. [ 311 ] On 15 December, he made his 700th italian league appearance in a 3–1 home win over Udinese ; during the same match, he besides made his 478th Serie A appearance for Juventus, which saw him equal Del Piero as the musician with the most appearances in the competition for the club. [ 312 ] [ 313 ] On 18 December, in a 2–1 away win over Sampdoria, Buffon made his 479th Serie A appearance for Juventus, surpassing Del Piero ‘s appearance record for the baseball club in the italian top fledge, equally well as making his 647th overall Serie A appearance, tying Maldini as the player with the most appearances in the competition. [ 314 ] On 13 February 2020, Buffon made nine saves in a 1–1 aside draw against Milan in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-finals. [ 315 ] He started in the final against Napoli on 17 June, keeping a clean sheet and making a series of injury-time saves to keep the score tied at 0–0 ; however, Juventus suffered a 4–2 kill in the resulting penalty shoot-out, with Buffon unable to save any spot kicks. [ 316 ] On 29 June, Buffon signed a new condense with Juventus, extending until June 2021. [ 317 ] On 4 July, he made his 648th appearance in Serie A in a 4–1 home acquire over rivals Torino, overtaking Maldini as the most capped player of all time in the rival, [ 318 ] besides becoming the most cap player in Europe ‘s lead five leagues with 665 appearances, including his 17 Ligue 1 appearances for Paris Saint-Germain during the 2018–19 season. [ 319 ] On 17 October, Buffon made his first appearance of the 2020–21 season, starting in a 1–1 aside draw against Crotone. [ 320 ] On 8 December, Buffon kept a clean sheet by saving seven shots, all of them taken by Messi, in a 3–0 aside win over Barcelona in Juventus ‘ final group match of the campaign. [ 321 ] Buffon became the foremost goalkeeper to always record a Champions League uninfected plane in four different decades. [ 322 ] Messi ‘s seven shots on target were besides the most recorded without scoring in the Champions League since the 2002–03 version. [ 323 ] On 11 May 2021, Buffon announced that he would leave Juventus at the goal of the season. [ 324 ] The take after day, Buffon saved Domenico Berardi ‘s penalty in a 3–1 away victory against Sassuolo, becoming the oldest Serie A goalkeeper to do so at the old age of 43 years, 103 days. [ 325 ] On 19 May, he started in Juventus ‘s 2–1 victory over Atalanta in the 2021 Coppa Italia Final, his final examination and 685th appearance for the baseball club ; after the couple, he was given the honor of lifting the claim, the sixth of his career, equalling Roberto Mancini as the player with the most title victories. [ 326 ]

return to Parma [edit ]

On 17 June 2021, after days of meditation following his passing from Juventus, newly-relegated Parma announced the render of Buffon through a short video posted on the club ‘s official Twitter account. [ 327 ] On 20 August 2021, Buffon made his foremost appearance, conceding a late equalizer in a 2–2 away draw against Frosinone. [ 328 ]

International career [edit ]

Youth career, early call-ups and Euro 2000 reservation [edit ]

Buffon with the italian national team in 1998

World Cup and European Championship debut [edit ]

Francesco Toldo ‘s impressive performances at Euro 2000 [ 344 ] mean that he retained his place in the first team for the begin of Italy ‘s 2002 World Cup qualifying campaign. In malice of heavy competition from Toldo, [ 345 ] Buffon regained the starting goalkeeping touch for the fourth match of the qualification series, away to Romania, and was the starting goalkeeper for the remaining four matches under Giovanni Trapattoni [ 346 ] as Italy qualified with an unbeaten record. Buffon played every moment of Italy ‘s 2002 World Cup political campaign, [ 30 ] keeping a clean sail in the opening match against Ecuador, [ 347 ] and saving a controversial penalty against co-hosts South Korea in the round of 16, which was not enough to stop the under-performing side from being eliminated by a fortunate goal in extra time. [ 348 ] He besides featured in every match at Euro 2004, keeping a clean sail in his nation ‘s opening 0–0 tie against Denmark, [ 349 ] although Italy, despite not losing a peer, once again underperform, and were eliminated in the first round on direct encounters following a tripartite, five-point tie with Sweden and Denmark. [ 350 ]

2006 World Cup ace [edit ]

“ Gigi proved once again he ‘s the best goalkeeper in the populace. ”

— Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko on Buffon ‘s operation following Italy ‘s 3–0 victory over his side in the 2006 World Cup quarter-finals. [ 351 ]
Buffon was once again the beginning option goalkeeper under his former Juventus coach and Trapattoni ‘s substitution Marcello Lippi, as Italy finished first in their 2006 World Cup qualifying group. [ 352 ] Although his position in Italy ‘s 2006 World Cup was initially in doubt, as he was being investigated for potential affair in the 2006 Calciopoli scandal, he was late named by Lippi as Italy ‘s starting goalkeeper for the tournament. [ 353 ] During the 2006 World Cup finals, Buffon was in excellent shape, setting a World Cup record by conceding just two goals in seven matches, [ 30 ] and keeping five clean sheets. In addition, he posted a 453-minute scoreless mottle, merely 64 minutes short of compatriot Walter Zenga ‘s all-time unbeaten record from the 1990 World Cup. The only goals he conceded were not in open play ; an own goal by teammate Cristian Zaccardo after a free-kick against the United States in Italy ‘s irregular match of the group degree, [ 354 ] and a Zinedine Zidane punishment in the final against France. [ 355 ] In the final, Buffon late made an important salvage in extra time on a header from eventual Golden Ball winner Zidane, [ 356 ] which Buffon later described as the most important spare of his career. [ 357 ] The couple ended 1–1 after extra prison term and was followed by a penalty gunfight in which neither Buffon nor Fabien Barthez saved a spot bang. [ 30 ] The alone miss was David Trezeguet ‘s attempt which hit the bed of the crossbar and failed to cross the line, enabling Italy ‘s Fabio Grosso to seal the victory for Italy. [ 358 ] Buffon was named Man of the Match in Italy ‘s 1–0 victory over Australia in the round of 16, [ 359 ] and late besides received the Yashin Award as the best goalkeeper of the tournament, [ 62 ] producing 40 saves, [ 360 ] and was elected to the team of the Tournament. [ 361 ] [ 362 ] Buffon besides finished second to compatriot Fabio Cannavaro in the 2006 Ballon d’Or and eighth in the FIFA World Player of the year for his performances that season, and was named in the 2006 FIFPro World XI and the 2006 UEFA Team of the class. In 2013, Nick Miller of ESPN FC named Buffon ‘s save against Lukas Podolski in Italy ‘s 2–0 victory against hosts Germany in the semi-finals as one of the greatest in World Cup history, placing it at number nine in his tilt of “ World Cup ‘s greatest always saves ”. [ 363 ] In 2019, Diario AS placed the latter deliver at number eight in their collection of “ The 10 greatest saves of all time ”. [ 364 ]

Post-World Cup victory [edit ]

Buffon wore the master ‘s armband for Italy for the first time under coach Roberto Donadoni, in a 2–0 family gain over Georgia in a Euro 2008 qualifier, due to the pause of regular master Fabio Cannavaro. [ 365 ] He was late named Italy ‘s irregular act master for Euro 2008 after incumbent Cannavaro was ruled out of the tournament ascribable to injury, and as Italy ‘s replacement captain Alessandro Del Piero was frequently deployed as a substitute. He made his first gear appearance as Italy ‘s captain in the state ‘s open regular of Euro 2008 on 9 June, a 3–0 defeat to the Netherlands. [ 366 ] [ 367 ] [ 368 ] In the second game of the group stage against Romania on 13 June, he saved an 81st-minute penalty from adrian Mutu to keep Italy ‘s hopes alive following their hatchway frustration, as the equal ended 1–1. [ 369 ] Buffon kept a clean sheet against France in the final group crippled, and garnered praise in the media for a noteworthy save against Karim Benzema, as Italy won 2–0 to advance to the quarter-finals. [ 370 ] Italy were eliminated nine days late, when a 0–0 draw after extra clock time led to a 4–2 penalty gunfight loss to eventual champions Spain ; Buffon saved one penalty in the gunfight [ 371 ] and was elected to the team of the Tournament for his performances. [ 372 ] Upon Marcello Lippi ‘s return, Buffon was confirmed as the starting goalkeeper. He played all three group matches during Italy ‘s disappointing 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup campaign in South Africa, in which they finished third in their group in tripartite three-point draw. [ 373 ] He earned his hundredth cap on 14 November 2009 in a friendly match against the Netherlands. [ 30 ] He was a key player in Italy ‘s World Cup qualifying political campaign as they finished top of their group, undefeated. [ 374 ] In the 2010 World Cup, Buffon was replaced at half-time in Italy ‘s 1–1 draw in their open group phase match against Paraguay after he had a problem with his sciatic steel. [ 30 ] He did not play again in the tournament and was substituted by Federico Marchetti. [ 375 ] Reigning champions Italy disappointed and failed to win a match, finishing last in their group with just two points earned. Lippi was dismissed after Italy ‘s premature elimination from the World Cup. [ 376 ]

Italy captain and Euro 2012 runner-up [edit ]

After the international retirement of Fabio Cannavaro, Buffon became the new captain of the national team under raw director Cesare Prandelli. On 9 February 2011, after recovering from a rear injury, Buffon played his first base game as Italy ‘s official captain in a 1–1 friendly pull back against Germany in Dortmund. [ 367 ] [ 377 ] On 6 September 2011, after a 1–0 Italy gain over Slovenia, Buffon surpassed Dino Zoff and established the new criminal record for most minutes without conceding a goal in european Championship qualifying matches, going 644 minutes without conceding a finish ; [ 378 ] the winnings besides allowed Italy to qualify for Euro 2012. On 11 October, anterior to Italy ‘s 3–0 win in a european qualifier against Northern Ireland, Buffon received a commemorative ceiling and decoration from UEFA to mark his 100th international appearance ; regarding his accomplishment, he commented : “ I feel I ‘m entering the football nobility today and I ‘m felicitous to celebrate this milestone while still playing ”. [ 30 ] On 15 November 2011, in a friendly match against Uruguay, Buffon surpassed Zoff ‘s number of caps for Italy ( 112 ), putting him behind only the retire former italian captains Cannavaro and Paolo Maldini ; [ 379 ] he overtook Zoff in Italy ‘s following friendly match against the United States on 29 February 2012. [ 367 ] He was subsequently selected as Italy ‘s starting goalkeeper and captain for Euro 2012 after leading his national side to qualify for the tournament undefeated, merely conceding two goals. [ 380 ] At Euro 2012, Buffon acted as captain during the entire tournament. He kept a clean sheet against the Republic of Ireland in the third group degree catch [ 381 ] and against England, saving a all-important penalty from Ashley Cole in the quarter-final gunfight, in which he was elected man of the meet. [ 382 ] In the semi-final peer against Germany, Buffon made several important saves, only being beaten by a penalty from Mesut Özil in the 92nd infinitesimal. Italy won the match 2–1 and advanced to the final against defending european and World champions Spain, with whom Italy had drawn 1–1 in the opening group stage match, lone having conceded three goals ; the semi-final victory qualified Italy for the 2013 Confederations Cup, as Spain had previously won the 2010 World Cup. [ 383 ] Italy were beaten 4–0 in the concluding as Spain claimed a record third gear back-to-back major trophy, and their second straight european Championship title. [ 384 ] Buffon was once again elected to the team of the Tournament for his performances. [ 30 ] [ 385 ]

2014 World Cup qualifying and 2013 Confederations Cup [edit ]

On 26 March 2013, in a 2014 World Cup qualifying pit against Malta, Buffon earned his 126th crown for Italy, equalling Paolo Maldini ‘s total of caps for the national team. In the same equal, Buffon saved a penalty from Michael Mifsud, helping Italy to a 2–0 away succeed. [ 386 ] Buffon was included in the italian squad for the 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil and played in every match of the tournament as captain. [ 387 ] On 16 June 2013, he featured in Italy ‘s opening 2–1 win against Mexico, where he was beaten only by a Javier Hernández penalty. [ 388 ] In the following game, on 19 June 2013 against Japan, the referee awarded Japan a penalty in the twentieth moment of the beginning half when he declared that Shinji Okazaki had been brought down by Buffon after a misplaced back crack by Mattia De Sciglio ; Buffon received a yellow tease. [ 389 ] The team ‘s eventual 4–3 acquire allowed Italy to progress to the semi-finals of the rival for the first clock time, where they were to face Spain in a replay of the Euro 2012 concluding. After a 0–0 absorb, they lost 7–6 in the resulting penalty gunfight. Although both Buffon and spanish counterpart Iker Casillas had managed to keep a clean sheet throughout the match, neither goalkeeper was able to stop a penalty in the gunfight ; the lone miss, by Leonardo Bonucci, was hit over bar. [ 390 ] In the third-place match, Italy defeated Uruguay 3–2 in the penalty gunfight after a 2–2 deadlock following extra fourth dimension. Buffon saved three penalties ; those taken by Diego Forlán, Juventus teammate Martín Cáceres and Walter Gargano. [ 391 ] On 6 September 2013, Buffon earned his hundred-and-thirty-fifth cap for Italy in the 2014 World Cup qualifier against Bulgaria. This cap put him at entirely one ceiling from phonograph record appearance holder Fabio Cannavaro. Buffon kept a clean sail for Italy in the 1–0 succeed and was praised for making several saves, earning the man of the match award. The gain allowed Italy to move seven points clear in their stipulate group. [ 392 ] [ 393 ] In the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying regular against the Czech Republic, at Juventus Stadium in Turin on 10 September 2013, Buffon equalled Cannavaro as the italian national team record appearance holder, with 136 caps. Italy won the couple 2–1, allowing them to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil as top of their group, with two games at hired hand ; this was the beginning time that the italian squad had done so. [ 394 ] [ 395 ] [ 396 ] On 11 October 2013, in a 2–2 World Cup qualifier draw against Denmark, Buffon surpassed Cannavaro, becoming the sole commemorate appearance holder for Italy, with 137. [ 397 ] On 2 January 2014, Buffon was awarded the 2013 Pallone Azzurro prize, which is given to the italian national side ‘s best player of the year. [ 398 ]

2014 World Cup [edit ]

“ Buffon is the Maradona of goalkeepers. ”

—Italy teammates on Buffon. [ 399 ] [ 400 ] [ 401 ]
On 12 May, Buffon was named in Italy ‘s 31-man preliminary World Cup team by Cesare Prandelli, [ 402 ] and on 31 May, he was named the starting goalkeeper and captain in the concluding squad. [ 403 ] Italy were placed in Group D, in the alleged “ group of end ”, or “ group of champions ”, with Costa Rica, England and Uruguay. [ 404 ] [ 405 ] Buffon became the third base actor to be part of five World Cup squads, tying the records held by Mexican goalkeeper Antonio Carbajal and German footballer Lothar Matthäus. [ 406 ] Due to an ankle injury suffered in train, Buffon was not selected to start in Italy ‘s first match of the World Cup against England on 14 June 2014 ; he was replaced by Salvatore Sirigu. Andrea Pirlo captained the team in his absence, as Italy won the meet 2–1. [ 407 ] In Italy ‘s future group match, which ended in a 1–0 loss to Costa Rica, he captained his national side for the first prison term at a World Cup, the one-fourth World Cup in which he appeared. [ 408 ] In Italy ‘s final examination group bet on against Uruguay, Buffon saved shots from Luis Suárez and Nicolás Lodeiro, as Italy were reduced to ten men following Claudio Marchisio ‘s controversial crimson card. Buffon was finally beaten in the 81st minute by a Diego Godín header, moments after Luis Suárez ‘s bite on Giorgio Chiellini. [ 409 ] Buffon was voted man of the match for his performance. [ 410 ] Italy finished in third base place in their group, and were eliminated in the group stage for a second consecutive World Cup. [ 411 ]

euro 2016 [edit ]

Buffon made his first appearance for Italy under new coach Antonio Conte on 9 September 2014, captaining his team in their afford european Championship qualifying match against Norway in Oslo. He kept a clean sheet as Italy won the catch 2–0. [ 412 ] [ 413 ] On 12 June 2015, Buffon became the beginning player to appear in 50 UEFA competitive external matches in Italy ‘s 1–1 away draw against Croatia in a european qualify catch. Buffon saved an early Mario Mandžukić penalty, but was taken off at half time and replaced by Salvatore Sirigu due to an injury. [ 414 ] He made his hundred-and-fiftieth appearance for Italy on 6 September 2015, keeping a uninfected sheet in a family 1–0 win over Bulgaria, his 62nd clean sheet at the external tied. [ 415 ] Italy qualified for Euro 2016 on 10 October in a 3–1 acquire over Azerbaijan. [ 416 ] After the Euro reservation, Buffon stated that Euro 2016 would be the final examination european championship of his career, [ 417 ] but expressed his intentions to retire merely after the 2018 World Cup, which would see him play up to the long time of 40. [ 418 ] On 31 May 2016, Buffon was named the master of Conte ‘s 23-man Italy squad for Euro 2016. [ 419 ] In Italy ‘s foremost crippled of the tournament on 13 June, Buffon kept a clean sheet in a 2–0 victory over Belgium. [ 420 ] This was Buffon ‘s fourteenth appearance at the European Championships, making him Italy ‘s out-right most cap player of all-time in the tournament, after overtaking Maldini, Del Piero and Cassano ; with his fourth tournament appearance, he besides equalled Del Piero for the most UEFA european Championships played in by an italian musician. [ 421 ] He kept another clean plane in a 1–0 win over Sweden in Italy ‘s second group fastness on 17 June, which allowed his nation to top the group and overture to the second round, although he was late booked in injury fourth dimension for time-wasting. [ 422 ] Due to a bout of fever, Buffon was rested in Italy ‘s final group match on 22 June, [ 423 ] a 1–0 kill against the Republic of Ireland, and was replaced by deputy Salvatore Sirigu. [ 424 ] He returned to the starting line-up for his nation ‘s round of 16 fixture against Spain on 27 June, making a all-important injury time save on Gerard Piqué to earn his third base straight clean sheet of the tournament, as Italy avenged their euro 2012 concluding frustration with a 2–0 victory over the defending champions. [ 425 ] After a 1–1 draw following excess time in Italy ‘s quarter-final fastness against Germany on 2 July, Buffon saved one penalty in the resulting shoot-out, although the reigning World Cup champions would ultimately emerge victorious following a 6–5 shoot-out loss. [ 426 ] His one on one deliver to deny Mario Gómez in regulation fourth dimension was late nominated for the UEFA Save of the Season Award. [ 427 ] By the end of the following month, his nominated deliver on Gómez finished third with 14 % of the votes. [ 428 ]

2018 World Cup qualifying crusade, retirement and brief retort [edit ]

Having represented his area a record 176 times, Buffon is the most capped actor in italian history. On 6 October 2016, Buffon made his 164th appearance for Italy in a 1–1 draw against Spain in a 2018 World Cup qualifying peer in Turin, under coach Gian Piero Ventura, making him the roast eighth-most capped external musician of all fourth dimension with Cobi Jones, and the second-most capped active international player, behind only Iker Casillas. [ 429 ] On 15 November 2016, Buffon won his 167th Italy cap in their friendly 0–0 draw in Milan against Germany, equalling the european external appearance record jointly held by Iker Casillas and Vitālijs Astafjevs, and making him the most capped active international musician in the world aboard Casillas. [ 430 ] On 1 January 2017, Buffon was awarded the 2016 Pallone Azzurro Award, as Italy ‘s best international actor throughout the calendar year, becoming the first player to win the award more than once. [ 431 ] On 24 March, Buffon made his 1,000th career appearance, keeping a houseclean sheet ( his 426th overall for baseball club and state ) in a 2–0 home over Albania in a World Cup modifier, becoming the eighteenth player to reach this milestone ; in the work, he besides became the sole most cap european player at international level, with his 168th appearance for Italy, and the joint fifth-most capped male external football player of all time, aboard Iván Hurtado. [ 432 ] [ 433 ] [ 434 ] [ 435 ] [ 436 ] On 2 September, Buffon made his hundred-and-seventieth international appearance in a 3–0 away kill to Spain in a World Cup qualifier ; [ 437 ] he late extended his european external appearance criminal record with his 172nd appearance for Italy on 6 October, in a 1–1 home draw against Macedonia in a 2018 World Cup modifier, making him the fourth-most capped male international football player of all time, ahead of egyptian striker Hossam Hassan ( 169 caps ), and behind only egyptian midfielder Ahmed Hassan ( 184 caps ), Saudi Arabian goalkeeper Mohamed Al-Deayea ( 178 caps ), and Mexican defender Claudio Suárez ( 177 caps ). [ 438 ] [ 439 ] [ 440 ] Buffon ‘s 175th external appearance came on 13 November, in the second leg of the World Cup play-offs against Sweden, at the San Siro Stadium in Milan. Although he kept a clean sheet in the 0–0 string, Italy ‘s 1–0 away passing in the inaugural stage on 10 November saw Sweden promote on aggregate, meaning that Italy had failed to qualify for the World Cup for the beginning fourth dimension in 60 years. Although he had primitively intended to retire after competing in the 2018 World Cup, following the match and Italy ‘s failure to qualify the tournament, an emotional and tearful Buffon communicated his retirement from international football, express : “ I ‘m not regretful for myself but all of italian football. We failed at something which besides means something on a social horizontal surface. There ‘s sorrow at finishing like that, not because time passes. There is surely a future for italian football, as we have pride, ability, determination and after bad tumbles, we always find a way to get back on our feet. ” [ 441 ] [ 442 ] [ 443 ] [ 444 ] He later confirmed his international retirement on social media, tweeting from the national team ‘s official score : “ We are proud, we are impregnable, we are stubborn. We will pick ourselves up as we have constantly done. I am leaving a national team set-up that will know how to pick itself up again. Best wishes to everybody, and specially to those with whom I have shared this beautiful travel. ” [ 441 ] [ 442 ] [ 443 ] [ 444 ] After winning the Serie A Footballer of the Year Award late that calendar month, Buffon hinted that he could possibly play for Italy again, stating : “ I took a break from the national team. I ‘m of a certain age, so it ‘s right for me to take a pause. With the way I am though, both for Juventus and for the national team I have always considered myself a soldier, so I could never desert a possible call in the future if needed. tied at 60, if there were a sum absence of goalkeepers and they asked me to come back, I ‘d be there, because I have in me the concept of nation. ” [ 445 ] [ 446 ] On 17 March 2018, despite Buffon ‘s initial decision to retire, he was called up for Italy ‘s March 2018 friendlies against Argentina and England by caretaker director Luigi Di Biagio. [ 447 ] When asked why he had accepted a call-up after initially announcing his international retirement, he responded : “ I ‘m a consistent person, who feels a great sense of province, that entirely is enough to explain my presence. In summation, I ‘ve always been an unite element in the national set-up, and I ‘d like my presence to be seen in this way. The new lads will grow, some already have, and from tomorrow they ‘ll get their chance, ” [ 448 ] and “ I am here for Astori [ a former external teammate of Buffon ‘s who had recently died from a heart attack ] equally well, it ‘s another rationality why I wanted to be here. ” [ 449 ] On 23 March, Buffon started in goal for Italy for the 176th time, in a friendly against Argentina, and besides surpassed Cannavaro to become the record appearance holder as Italy captain, with 80 ; Italy were defeated by Argentina 2–0. [ 450 ] On 17 May 2018, Buffon announced in a press conference with Juventus that he would not return to the national team for its May and June friendlies. [ 451 ] [ 452 ]

Player profile [edit ]

vogue of play and reception [edit ]

“ The best goalkeeper I have always faced was Buffon. When I was at Juventus, it was already unmanageable to get past Cannavaro and Thuram in refutation during discipline sessions. If I managed to get past them, then I would find Buffon, and it was about impossible to beat him ! ”

— Zlatan Ibrahimović. [ 453 ]
Since his emergence as a precocious endowment in his young, Buffon has been renowned for his consistent performances throughout his career, and has received praise from managers, players, ampere well as both present and former goalkeeping colleagues, for his concentration and calm air composure under blackmail, ampere well as his work-rate, and longevity. [ nota bene 6 ] Regarded as one of the best players always in his situation, he is often considered to be the original of the modern goalkeeper, and has been cited by many other subsequent goalkeepers as a major influence and function model. [ 13 ] [ 455 ] [ 458 ] [ 462 ] [ 463 ] [ 464 ] [ 465 ] He has been described as “ an agile, solid, and commanding shot-stopper, who is enormously experienced at the highest grade ” and “ an carry through and well respected custodian ” [ 466 ] [ 467 ] [ 468 ] [ 469 ] with an “ [ e ] xcellent positional smell, courage, power and class ”. [ 470 ] Buffon has been praised for his athleticism, his “ great shot-stopping ”, [ 471 ] his acrobatic dives, and his quick reflexes, [ 467 ] [ 472 ] angstrom well as his ability to produce decisive saves, [ 473 ] [ 474 ] despite being a grandiloquent, large and physically imposing goalkeeper. [ 458 ] [ 475 ] Although he has at times been criticised for not being peculiarly adept at stopping penalties, [ 476 ] he has besides proven to be effective in this sphere, as demonstrated by his penalty-saving record ; [ 477 ] [ 478 ] [ 479 ] [ 480 ] With 16 saves, he has stopped the joint-fifth–highest number of penalties in Serie A history, aboard Giuseppe Moro. [ 481 ]

“ There have been some very good goalkeepers in my era, but Buffon is there for consistency. Most of the goalkeepers have had times when their form has not been so good, but Buffon has been at such a high horizontal surface for therefore retentive. ”

— Ronaldinho on choosing Buffon as the goalkeeper in his all–time top XI. [ 482 ] [ 483 ]
Buffon with the testis for Italy at UEFA Euro 2012 In his prime, Buffon was a talented, complete, brave, aggressive, and frequently natural and frantic goalkeeper, who was recognised for his amphetamine, art, and anticipation when coming off his lineage in one on one situations, a well as his confidence, goalkeeping technique, reactions, and ability to get to ground quickly to collect, parry, or tied challenge for the ball with his feet ; when playing in teams that relied upon high defensive lines and a zonal stigmatize system, he frequently functioned as a sweeper-keeper, frequently rushing out of his area to clear the ball or face opponents who had beaten the offside trap. [ nota bene 7 ] He was besides highly regarded for his treatment, forward pass ability, and command of the area on high balls ; [ nb 8 ] however, throughout his career, Buffon has occasionally been accused by pundits of being excessively cautious on crosses and of not always coming out to collect them, [ 463 ] [ 466 ] [ 486 ] [ 502 ] [ 504 ] [ 505 ] and has besides drawn criticism for preferring to punch the ball out to his teammates at times quite than holding on to it. [ 477 ] [ 494 ] Although not as ace with the musket ball at his feet as the newer generation of goalkeepers that emerged in his late career, [ 463 ] [ 490 ] [ 506 ] Buffon besides possesses good footwork, vitamin a well as authentic distribution, which has enabled him to adapt to more contemporary systems, which require goalkeepers to play with their feet more frequently and be involved in the build-up of plays ; his confidence in self-control allows him to play the ball out from the binding on the ground to his defenders and start western fence lizard counter-attacks, or find his teammates further up the pitch or out on the wing with deeper kicks with his right metrical foot. In his youth, his ball skills tied occasionally led him to take on opponents, whenever he was put under blackmail by on-running strikers. [ niobium 9 ]

“ technically, with his feet, you would n’t say he looks a natural. He ‘s not a keeper like Marc-André ter Stegen, Claudio Bravo or Manuel Neuer. But his put is perfect. He ‘s identical abstruse. He never strays far from his line. That gives him an extra split second to see the musket ball, judge the flight, move his feet. And more much than not, he catches the ball. The early thing that stands out is his form when diving. It ‘s about faultless. His arms and legs and body are all in synchronize. Everything is solid. ”

—Football coach, initiate and former Sunderland goalkeeper David Preece on Buffon. [ 490 ]
After struggling with a serial of injuries between 2008 and 2010, [ 517 ] [ 518 ] Buffon efficaciously adapted his manner of goalkeeping to the physical effects of ageing, while besides modifying his diet and coach government, and as a resultant role, has developed into a less outstanding, but more effective, calm, and reflective goalkeeper ; [ 454 ] [ 455 ] [ 456 ] [ 486 ] [ 495 ] [ 496 ] despite the loss of some of his physical forte, explosiveness, speed and mobility, he has continued to excel at the highest level due to the consistency of his performances, a well as his placement between the posts, tactical news, decision-making, and his ability to read the game and organise his defense. [ nota bene 10 ] In contrast with his goalkeeping style in his early career, Buffon has much preferred to position himself in deeper areas in his former career, closer to his line, in particular in one on one situations, in order to increase the outdistance between himself and his opponent, giving himself more clock to assess situations and parry the ball. [ 477 ] [ 486 ] [ 490 ] [ 496 ] [ 519 ] In addition to his goalkeeping abilities, Buffon has been singled out for his charisma, potent mentality, discipline in educate, song presence in goal, and leadership, [ 454 ] [ 458 ] [ 520 ] [ 521 ] and has been described as “ a key preen room personality ”. [ 471 ] [ 31 ] [ 456 ]

bequest [edit ]

Buffon is widely regarded by players, pundits and managers as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, [ nota bene 1 ] and by some in the frolic as the greatest always. [ nota bene 2 ] In the introduction of his 2008 autobiography, Numero 1 ( Number 1 ), Roberto Perrone describes him as : “ the greatest goalkeeper in the universe, one of the four or five that will constantly live on in the memory of global football ”. [ 522 ] In 2012, he was voted the twentieth best football player in the universe by The Guardian, finishing as the second gear highest rank goalkeeper, behind Iker Casillas. [ 523 ] Buffon was awarded the Nereo Rocco Prize on 2 September 2014, which is given to a football player in recognition of their career. [ 524 ] In 2015, France Football rated him as one of the ten-spot best footballers in the world who are over the age of 36. [ 525 ] In 2016, he was named the greatest goalkeeper in history by the same magazine. Later that year, he was besides named the greatest goalkeeper of all-time in the UEFA Champions League in an official UEFA on-line Twitter poll. [ 526 ] In 2015, UEFA ranked him as the third–best actor ever not to have won the UEFA Champions League, [ 527 ] while in 2019, FourFourTwo placed Buffon at number two behind only Ronaldo in their list of “ The 25 best players never to win the Champions League ”. [ 528 ] In May 2020, Sky Sports ranked him as the fourth–best player always to have not won the Champions League or european Cup, [ 529 ] and he was besides voted the “ Greatest Goalkeeper Ever ” by users of Eurosport.com. [ 530 ]

attire [edit ]

Although when he started his career it was more coarse for goalkeepers to wear long-sleeved jerseys, Buffon has constantly been known for wearing short-sleeves throughout his entire career, tied during the winter months ; when asked in a 2017 consultation with FourFourTwo why he preferred to wear short-change sleeves, he commented : “ I truly do n’t know why. It ‘s good something that I ‘ve always done, right from the clock I first started playing in goal. It constantly felt good. And immediately look : lots of goalkeepers do it. I ‘ve started a manner. ” [ 460 ] [ 531 ] [ 532 ] When asked again about his goalkeeping attire in a 2018 interview with L’Équipe’s magazine Sports et Style, he stated that he first cut the sleeves off of his goalkeeping kit out as a child, “ for appliance and to feel more comfortable ”, besides adding that he “ feel [ randomness ] more when the ball touches [ his ] forearms ”. [ 533 ]

personal life [edit ]

Buffon was born into a family of italian athletes on 28 January 1978. His mother, Maria Stella, was a discus potter and his father, Adriano, was a weightlifter. [ 504 ] Following their athletic retirement, they subsequently worked as P.E. school teachers. [ 35 ] [ 534 ] Buffon ‘s two sisters, Veronica and Guendalina, played volleyball for the italian national volleyball team, and his uncle, Dante Masocco, was a basketball player in Serie A1, who besides represented the national team. [ 79 ] Former Milan, Inter, and Italy goalkeeper Lorenzo Buffon is besides a cousin of Gianluigi Buffon ‘s grandfather. [ 27 ] Buffon is Catholic. [ 535 ] [ 536 ] [ 537 ] [ 538 ] Buffon married Czech model Alena Šeredová in June 2011, although they had been in a relationship since 2005. They have two children, Louis Thomas ( born in 2007 and named after Buffon ‘s paragon Thomas N’Kono ) [ 34 ] and David Lee ( born in 2009 and named after Van Halen singer David Lee Roth ). [ 62 ] [ 539 ] [ 540 ] In May 2014, Buffon announced that he had separated from his wife after three years of marriage. [ 541 ] He was soon romantically linked to italian sports initiate, journalist and television host Ilaria D’Amico. [ 542 ] In 2015, Buffon announced that the copulate were expecting a child together. [ 543 ] On 6 January 2016, the match announced the birth of their son Leopoldo Mattia. [ 544 ] In the summer of 2017, the pair became engaged. [ 545 ] Prior to his relationship with and marriage to Šeredová, Buffon had besides previously been engaged to a sprinter from the Italy national athletics team, Vincenza Calì. [ 546 ] On 14 November 2008, Buffon released the italian edition of his autobiography, Numero 1 ( Number 1 ), which was written in collaboration with writer and Corriere della Sera diarist Roberto Perrone. [ 547 ] In his autobiography, he revealed that he had suffered with bouts of depression during the 2003–04 season, following Juventus ‘ penalty shoot-out get the better of in the 2003 Champions League final examination, and due to Juventus ‘ negative performance that season. In 2013, he elaborated that, between December 2003 and June 2004, he regularly visited a psychologist, but refused to take medication, and he overcame his natural depression anterior to Euro 2004. [ 396 ] [ 454 ] [ 534 ] In January 2019, he further revealed that he had even suffered from panic attacks due to his depression during his early career with Juventus, and that he even missed a game as a result. [ 548 ] Buffon suffers from spheksophobia, [ 549 ] as he is allergic to wasp stings. [ 550 ] [ 551 ] In his youth, Buffon supported a numeral of clubs, including his hometown cabaret Carrarese, along with Genoa, and german side Borussia Mönchengladbach ; up until the long time of seven, he besides supported Juventus, while between the ages of eight and twelve, he was a fan of Inter – due to his wonder for director Giovanni Trapattoni – angstrom well as Pescara, Como, Avellino, and Campobasso, before finally supporting Genoa. [ 552 ] [ 553 ] [ 554 ] [ 555 ] [ 556 ] He was a extremity of the ultras of Carrarese, specifically the “ Commando Ultrà indian Tips ”, and to this day, he still has the group ‘s appoint printed on his goalkeeping gloves. [ 552 ]

AIC [edit ]

On 7 May 2012, Buffon was elected vice-president of the italian Footballers ‘ Association ( AIC ) ; this was the first gear clock an active football player had held this military position. [ 557 ] [ 558 ]

Media and endorsements [edit ]

Buffon has been sponsored by german sportswear company Puma during his career, wearing Puma gloves and Puma King football boots, and has appeared in Puma commercials. [ 559 ] Buffon has besides featured in Pepsi commercials, including an ad for the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, where he lined up aboard several early footballers, including David Beckham, Raúl and Roberto Carlos, in taking on a team of sumo players. [ 560 ] In 2009, Buffon, an avid poker player and gambler, was hired by PokerStars to endorse their products. [ 561 ] Buffon was featured on the cover of the italian edition of Konami ‘s PES 2008, aboard ball-shaped coverstar Cristiano Ronaldo. [ 562 ] Buffon besides features in EA Sports ‘ FIFA video game series, and was named aboard Manuel Neuer, Iker Casillas and Petr Čech in the Ultimate Team Best Goalkeepers in FIFA 14. [ 563 ] In 2011, he featured in a commercial for italian mineral urine company Ferrarelle. [ 564 ] In 2016, Buffon was chosen as the newfangled confront of Amica Chips. [ 565 ] The follow class, he was alternatively chosen as the new face of Head & Shoulders in Italy. [ 566 ] Throughout the 2017–18 season, Buffon appeared in the Netflix docu-series called First Team: Juventus. [ 567 ] In May 2018, Buffon announced his partnership with the video game World of Tanks. [ 568 ] Late that same year, he besides featured in a commercial for Birra Moretti. [ 569 ] In December 2019, Buffon announced his collaboration with the spanish invest and accessories retailer Kimoa, which is owned by spanish race car driver Fernando Alonso, to release four different limited edition models of sunglasses, which represent four european cities associated with Buffon ‘s football career and achievements : Berlin ( the placement of the triumphant 2006 World Cup Final ), Moscow ( the city in which he made his external debut and won the UEFA Cup ), Paris ( the city in which his former golf club PSG is based ), and Turin ( the city in which his golf club at the fourth dimension, Juventus, is based ). [ 570 ] [ 571 ] In January 2020, Buffon made a cameo appearance in the music television for “ Ti saprò aspettare ” by Biagio Antonacci, where he coaches a children ‘s football team against Antonacci as the opposing coach. In the concluding scenery, Buffon takes a blastoff on Antonacci as goalkeeper, with the video intentionally stopping before the ball is either scored or saved. [ 572 ]

commercial enterprise [edit ]

On 16 July 2010, Buffon became a share-holding collaborator of his hometown club Carrarese ; he initially owned 50 % of the golf club ‘s shares, along with Cristiano Lucarelli and Maurizio Mian. [ 573 ] On 10 June 2011, he acquired an extra 20 % of the club ‘s shares. [ 574 ] On 6 July 2012, Buffon become the exclusive stockholder of Carrarese through his family ‘s party, Buffon & conscientious objector. [ 575 ] In May 2015, Buffon stated that he would be stepping down from his position as the owner of Carrarese at the conclusion of the 2014–15 season ; [ 576 ] in July, he sold 70 % of Carrarese ‘s shares to the italian actual estate developer Raffaele Tartaglia, who took restraint of the club, although Buffon still remained with the club as a minority stockholder. [ 577 ] After continuing to struggle with fiscal difficulties, the club officially declared bankruptcy on 11 March 2016. [ 578 ] On 30 May 2011, he joined the board of directors of the italian textile company Zucchi Group S.p.A., with a partake of 19.4 %. [ 579 ] Despite the company ‘s fiscal difficulties, in 2015, Buffon, who had by then acquired 56 % of the ship’s company ‘s shares, had reportedly invested €20 million in holy order to save the company from bankruptcy. In former December, Zucchi was acquired by a french investment fund, Astrance Capital, which took control of Buffon ‘s company GB Holding, under an agreement to restructure Zucchi Group ‘s debt, while Buffon was allowed to retain a 15 % share in the company. [ 580 ] In 2017, Buffon launched his own brand of wine under the name “ Buffon # 1 ”. [ 581 ]

philanthropy [edit ]

Buffon is besides known for his charity work. In addition to his other charitable endeavours, after every match he auctions off his individualized captain ‘s armband for charity. [ 582 ] In 2012, Buffon joined the “ respect Diversity ” program, through UEFA, which aimed to fight against racism, discrimination and intolerance in football. [ 583 ] On 1 September 2014, Buffon, along with many stream and former footballing stars, took depart in the “ Match for Peace ”, which was played at Rome ‘s Stadio Olimpico, with the proceeds being donated to charity. [ 584 ] In October 2019, Buffon was named a UN Goodwill Ambassador for the World Food Programme. [ 585 ]

Politics [edit ]

prior to the 2013 italian general election, Buffon publicly endorsed the prime minister at the time, Mario Monti. [ 586 ] Buffon was one of over 80 italian celebrities to sign a petition in favor of the 2016 referendum on constitutional reform, promoted by the Democratic Party Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. [ 587 ]

controversy [edit ]

While at Parma, Buffon ‘s decisiveness to wear the number 88 shirt, [ 588 ] preferably than his previous act 1 shirt, for the 2000–01 season caused controversy in Italy. Buffon claimed to be unaware of the number ‘s neo-Nazi connotations, stating that 88 represented “ four balls ”, which are symbols of the character and attributes of a person. [ 589 ] He stated that they were meant to signify his need for these attributes after his injury prior to Euro 2000, and that they besides represented his “ metempsychosis ”. [ 589 ] He subsequently offered to change numbers, [ 590 ] choosing the squad number 77 rather. [ 591 ] [ 592 ] In September 1999, Buffon faced heavy criticism and austere corrective sanctions for bearing the fascist motto “ Boia chi molla “ ( “ who gives up is a villain ” ) handwritten on a jersey under his goalkeeping jersey, which he wore and showed during media interviews after a meet against Lazio. [ 593 ] Buffon publicly apologised, stating that it was a stupid and naïve gesticulate, because he was completely ignorant of the motto ‘s neo-fascist connotations, [ 590 ] stating that he had beginning encountered the motto written on a board school desk, and was unaware of its far rightist association and, in particular, its use with the neo-fascists in Reggio Calabria during the Reggio revolt in the early 1970s. [ 592 ] He declared that he merely intended to use the motto to spur on his teammates and the fans, as Parma had previously encountered some disappoint results. [ 594 ] In 2000, Buffon risked a four-year prison sentence for falsifying a high educate account diploma in order to enrol for a police degree at the University of Parma, and ultimately paid a 6,350,000 Lire very well in 2001 ; he former described the incidental as his biggest regret in life, stating that it had been a corruptible gesture. [ 490 ] [ 534 ] [ 595 ] [ 596 ] On 12 May 2006, during the acme of the Calciopoli scandal, Buffon was accused of illegally betting on Serie A matches, which initially put his position in Italy ‘s 2006 World Cup police squad at risk. [ 597 ] Buffon was formally interrogated and admitted placing bets on sporting matches until players were forbidden from doing so in October 2005, but denied always placing wagers on italian football matches. [ 598 ] He was cleared of all charges in December 2006. [ 599 ] Following Italy ‘s 2006 World Cup victory celebrations at Circus Maximus in Rome in July, he attracted further controversy when he distractedly displayed a banner he had received from the herd, with the writing “ Fieri di essere italiani ” ( “ Proud to be italian ” ), equally well as a Celtic traverse, a symbol which has been adopted by neo–Nazis in late years [ when? ] ; Buffon late stated that he had not seen the symbol. [ 600 ] On 11 April 2018, in the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League quarter-final second base leg away to Real Madrid, Juventus needed a 3–0 gain to force extra time, which was the scoreline when, deep into second-half stop time, referee Michael Oliver awarded a penalty to Real Madrid. Buffon was sent off for protest after a confrontation with Oliver ; Juventus were eliminated from the Champions League as the resulting penalty kick was converted by Cristiano Ronaldo. [ 286 ] Buffon ‘s post-match comments made about Oliver drew much media attention and controversy :

“ I know the referee saw what he saw, but it was surely a dubious incident. not clear-cut. And a doubtful incidental at the 93rd infinitesimal when we had a net penalty denied in the first leg, you can not award that at this orient. The team gave its wholly, but a human being can not destroy dreams like that at the end of an extraordinary rejoinder on a doubtful situation. clearly you can not have a heart in your chest, but a bag of rubbish. On crown of that, if you do n’t have the character to walk on a pitch like this in a stadium like this, you can sit in the stands with your wife, your kids, having your drink and eating chip. You can not ruin the dreams of a team. I could have told the referee anything at that moment, but he had to understand the academic degree of the disaster he was creating. If you ca n’t handle the pressure and have the courage to make a decision, then you should equitable sit in the stands and eat your crispen. ”Buffon’s post-match comments about referee Michael Oliver[286]

On 11 May, Buffon was charged by UEFA over post-match comments made about referee Oliver, and late, on 5 June, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body gave Buffon a three-match ban for UEFA competition matches “ for which he would be differently eligible ”. [ 286 ] Buffon late issued an apology, submit :

“ If I saw the referee again, I would give him a embrace and say that he should have taken more clock with that decision. With the feelings, emotions and disappointment of the site, I behaved in a way that was not usual for me. After that meet, I went beyond the limits with the things I said about the referee and I apologise for that. ”Buffon’s apology to referee Michael Oliver[601]

career statistics [edit ]

club [edit ]

As of match played 19 December 2021[466][602]

International [edit ]

Appearances and goals by national team and year[603][604]
National team	Year	Apps
Italy	1997	1
	1998	3
	1999	8
	2000	4
	2001	7
	2002	12
	2003	7
	2004	12
	2005	3
	2006	15
	2007	8
	2008	9
	2009	11
	2010	2
	2011	10
	2012	11
	2013	15
	2014	8
	2015	8
	2016	13
	2017	8
	2018	1
Total		176

Honours [edit ]

Parma [ 602 ] [ 605 ]
Juventus [ 602 ] [ 605 ]
Paris Saint-Germain
Italy U21
Italy
Individual
Records
Orders

CONI: Golden Collar of Sports Merit: 2006[685]

See besides [edit ]

Notes [edit ]

References [edit ]

bibliography [edit ]

Gianluigi Buffon, Roberto Perrone, Numero 1, Milan, Rizzoli, 2008, ISBN 978-88-17-02438-9 (Number 1). ( in Italian )