Ten Serie A titles. One World Cup. Over a thousand matches played. Three FIFPro World XI appearances as a goalkeeper. And countless other achievements over a truly remarkable career of 28 years.
Earlier this week, Gianluigi Buffon called time on one of the greatest football careers we have ever seen - at any position, let alone "for a goalkeeper". The legendary Tuscan shot-stopper claimed almost every possible accolade over an almost three-decade period during which he forever carved his name into Italian and world football immortality.
In 1996, an 18-year-old Buffon was elevated to Parma's starting 11 for the first time. Though already seen as a promising prospect, almost no one could have imagined what was about to unfold in the years and decades to come. While Buffon's first season as a starter did begin to pique interest, the first sign that he was truly something special came a season later. At the time, Ronaldo Nazário was the consensus best player in the world. Playing for Inter Milan against Parma, Ronaldo stepped forward to take a penalty kick - only for it to be denied by Buffon.
The following years saw consistent high league finishes as well as a UEFA Cup and a Coppa Italia title coming Parma's way; Buffon's stock continued to rise throughout, culminating in a €52 million move to Juventus in 2001. When adjusted for inflation, this would be equivalent to an €88 million transfer today - completely unheard of for a goalkeeper.
Five years after signing for the Bianconeri, Buffon played a pivotal role in undoubtedly the apex of his storied career: Italy's World Cup victory in 2006. Buffon kept an unprecedented five clean sheets as the Azzurri claimed the world title for the first time since 1982. While this record has since been equalled by Iker Casillas in 2010, it will likely never be broken owing to the drastic uptick in goalscoring since that era - an uptick largely fuelled by changes to the football metagame which will forever leave a significant influence on football tactics.
In extra time of the final of the 2006 World Cup, Buffon made his greatest and most important save when he tipped Zinedine Zidane's would-be title-winning header over the crossbar. That save swung the momentum of the match and became one of the most iconic moments in World Cup history.
Buffon's qualities as a leader were recognized when he was appointed as the Italian national team's captain in 2010; he would take up the same role at Juve a year later. Buffon did not have to wait long for success with the armband on; he would win the Serie A title in his first season as Juve captain. He would go on to win seven of the next eight Scudetti with Juve; the only one which he did not was 2018-19 when he played for Paris Saint-Germain.
For all his achievements, Buffon is equally as, if not more, well-known for his almost incomparable longevity. As if playing until the age of 45 weren't already impressive enough, a 39-year-old Buffon won the Serie A Footballer of the Year and The Best FIFA Goalkeeper awards in 2017; that same year, he was also selected to the FIFPro World XI and the UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season. While it's certainly true that goalkeepers tend to last longer, Buffon was doing all of this at an age when most players would already have been retired for several years.
The only significant blemish on Buffon's career is one that is often brought up when discussing his legacy. Buffon is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to have never won the UEFA Champions League. During his 19 years at Juve, Buffon made the Champions League final on three occasions but came up short each time. That being said, his Juve teams were unlucky enough to run into a dynastic team each time - AC Milan in 2003, Barcelona in 2015, and Real Madrid in 2017.
All things considered, Gianluigi Buffon ends his career in the goalkeeping pantheon - at a level where his only peers are Lev Yashin and Iker Casillas. The claim that Buffon is the greatest goalkeeper of all time is a reasonable one. We will almost certainly never see a career like his again.
No comments:
Post a Comment