THE greatest goalkeeper ever? Gianluigi Buffon is definitely one of the best as he reaches 1000 career matches today.
The 39-year-old will lead the Italian national team out against Albania to accomplish the remarkable feat.
Football Whispers looks at the amazing career of the Italy and Juventus legend.
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Buffon is already the most-capped Italy international, with 167 appearances, which will become 168 this evening.
And he will join an exclusive club, which currently has just 17 players, of those to play 1,000 games.
The list includes Paolo Maldini, Javier Zanetti and Raúl, but it mostly features goalkeepers – in fact the top three all play in the same position as Buffon. Peter Shilton, Rogerio Ceni and Ray Clemence.
“To be on the brink of this achievement gives me the feeling that I have been both fortunate and a professional,” Buffon told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Indeed, he was a professional from his very first game, on November 19, 1995 for Parma against the legendary AC Milan side.
Just 18 months earlier, Fabio Capello’s side had thrashed Barcelona 4-0 in the Champions League final, but that didn’t daunt Buffon, who made notable saves against Ballon d’Or winners Roberto Baggio and George Weah in the 0-0 draw.
With first choice goalkeeper Luca Bucci injured, Nevio Scala decided to call up Buffon, then a 17-year-old, to train with the first team.
“He started training with us on the Tuesday, he stood in goal and did extraordinary things – yet things that for him seemed perfectly normal,” Scala told Goal.
“Then, we started doing some drills with the forwards and nobody managed to score a goal against him.
“I turned to my goalkeeper coach, Vincenzo Di Palma, and I asked him if he could see what I was seeing.
“’This guy is a phenomenon,’ he replied. Both of us were speechless.”
And after being impressed all week, it was a visit to the player’s room on the eve of the game that proved decisive for Buffon’s long and successful career.
“On the Saturday, I decided to go to speak to Gigi,” Scala added.
“I didn’t give him any time to think about why I was there and I said this exact sentence to him: ‘And if I make you play tomorrow?’ His response? ‘No problem, coach.’
“He said it without hesitation and with a positive swagger.
“He was fully aware of what I was asking and yet conveyed all of this confidence to me, the game was against Milan, after all.
“And I knew that to have him debut against such a team would be a huge decision, but he didn’t seem to feel the weight of such a great responsibility and that convinced me 100 per cent to pick him.”
Ever since then, that ‘no problem’ attitude is how it has been for Buffon – no nonsense, just brilliant goalkeeping and honour after honour.
At Parma, he won a UEFA Cup and a Coppa Italia before joining Juventus in 2001 for £33million.
Somewhat remarkably given inflation in the transfer market, that is still a world record for his position, but it’s testament to Buffon that he was worth every penny.
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Since his arrival in Turin, he’s won nine Serie A titles (although two of those were taken away due to the Calciopoli scandal) and two more Coppa Italias – both as part of a league and cup double.
He didn’t jump ship like so many when Juventus were relegated to Serie B, instead staying around and helping them to promotion with a title in the Italian second tier.
Buffon also has a World Cup win and a defeat in the European Championships final under his belt, as well as being Ballon d’Or runner up in 2006.
It hasn’t been plain sailing for the legendary goalkeeper though, he has had a difficult battle with depression.
Reflecting on that time with Kicker this week, he revealed it was important for him to not take medicine.
“I remained master of my own destiny,” he said, dependent on himself to get through it.
Then in 2010, there were the back problems that forced the goalkeeper to miss Italy's World Cup defence and go under the knife.
There were questions if he could ever be the same, and for a while, his form wasn’t what it was, but it wasn’t for long, and arguably over the last few years Buffon is as good as he ever has been.
He broke two Serie A records in the 2015/16 season – for games (10) and minutes (973) without conceding.
Buffon was also crucial in Juventus’ run to the Champions League final in 2015.
That defeat to Barcelona, as well as the one to AC Milan in the 2013 final, still plays on his mind.
“I’ve been asking myself for years what drives me to keep playing,” he told Kicker.
“The inner conflict brings out strong motivations in me.
“If I had already won the Champions League, I would be drained.”
And although it won’t be easy for Juventus against Barcelona in the quarter finals of the competition, it would be no surprise if this is finally his year, with I Bianconeri the only unbeaten side left in the Champions League.
While there is one gap from his CV at club level, at international level there isn’t, and although it looks like Italy finally have a replacement for him in 18-year-old Gianluigi Donnarumma once Buffon does walk away, but he still remains the undisputed No.1.
This evening, he’ll lead his country out at the Stadio Renzo Barbera in Palermo with the captain’s armband.
He’ll transmit calm to a team, most of whom were born after his debut or grew up idolising him.
Once again, he’ll turn his back on the goal, and will be its first and last line of defence, as he’s done 999 times before.
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