A man who made his professional debut over 20 years ago is the highest-ranked shot-stopper in the 2016 Goal 50, which is only further testament to the Italian icon’s No.1 status.
During a question and answer session with young Juventus fans last year, a boy stood up and introduced himself as Lorenzo from Parma.
“Here’s my question,” he began. “Why did you decide to go down to Serie B with Juventus [in 2006] when you were a World Cup winner, given so many other teams wanted you?”
“Hi Lorenzo,” Buffon replied. “Say hello to Parma for me when you go home – it always has a place in my heart. Naija and Bet
“Anyway, I chose to drop down into Serie B with Juve because I thought of you. I thought about you because, in football, we talk a lot. But I firmly believe in certain moments you need to replace words with deeds.”
Buffon has spent his entire career letting his football do the talking for him. When former Parma coach Nevio Scala came to him on November 18, 1995 and told him that he would be making his professional debut against AC Milan the following day, the then 17-year-old simply replied: “No problem, coach.”
The following afternoon, Buffon turned in one of the most memorable goalkeeping performances ever seen in Serie A, making save after save as Parma earned an unexpected 0-0 draw against a side spearheaded by George Weah and Roberto Baggio.
Yet Buffon barely celebrated afterwards. Even when the press came looking for a soundbite from the new teenage sensation, he simply thanked Scala and Parma for the faith that they had shown on him. “It was as if he had done the most normal thing in the world,” former team-mate Alessandro Melli revealed. “Almost as if he had not realised what he had done.”
Despite the fact that Buffon would go on to become the most expensive goalkeeper in history when he left Parma for Juventus in 2001 and then a World Cup winner with Italy five years later, he never lost his humility.
When Juve were relegated due to their involvement in the ‘Calciopoli‘ scandal, Buffon rejected the advances of Inter, AC Milan and Arsenal. “If I have become world champion, it is thanks to Juve,” he said at the time. “I can cope with a year in the second division and I will look to do something new by winning the Serie B title.”
A man of his word, Buffon played a key role in Juve’s triumphant return to Serie A at the very first attempt. His loyalty has never, and will never, be forgotten by Bianconeri fans. But then, it is typical of the man. He has never forgotten where he comes from.
It is why he made a point of referencing Parma in the aforementioned Q&A session. It is why he invested money in his hometown club of Carrarese. And it is also why he greeted Federico Bernardeschi like a brother when his fellow Carrara native was invited to train with the Italy squad.
“He hugged me two or three times,” the stunned Fiorentina starlet said. “It was a great feeling. I had goosebumps.”
Such acts of kindness and generosity are admirable on a purely human level but, according to former AC Milan No.1 Giovanni Galli, these attributes are key to what makes Buffon such a great goalkeeper. When asked earlier this year what sets Buffon apart from his peers, Galli replied, “His character, which is the most important thing for a goalkeeper.”
Certainly, when Buffon was at Parma, Scala, Melli and others noticed a maturity that belied his tender age. Yet nowadays, Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri regularly praises Buffon for retaining the enthusiasm of a youngster, believing it has been key to the 38-year-old’s ability to maintain such on-field excellence for the past two decades.
Buffon’s drive has undoubtedly been integral to him retaining such an important role for both club and country. As Juve midfielder Claudio Marchisio said after a win over Sassuolo in March, “Gigi is very important in the locker room as well as on the pitch, both as a captain and a man. He proves his professionalism and desire to improve every single day.”
It is for this reason that he is such an icon to so many. Former Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba admitted during his first year in Turin that only after seeing how Buffon approached every single training session with such passion did he realise what level of dedication was required to reach the very top. Neymar confessed last year that he used to regularly pick Juventus when on his Playstation just so that he could be Buffon.
It is the respect of his rivals that is most telling, though. Buffon has humbly claimed that Iker Casillas is the greatest goalkeeper of his era yet the Spanish shot-stopper says that the Italian has always been his inspiration. “Anyone of my generation who dreamt of becoming a goalkeeper had the goal of emulating him,” the former Real Madrid No.1 stated.
There are things that Buffon has achieved, though, that will likely never be emulated. Marks that will never be passed. On March 20 of this year, in a derby against Torino, the Juve skipper broke Sebastiano Rossi’s Serie A record of 929 minutes without conceding a goal. He was ultimately beaten, albeit by a penalty, 973 minutes after he had last picked the ball from his net.
It is a remarkable achievement but perhaps the fact that he overtook Dino Zoff’s tally of 903 minutes the previous weekend was even more symbolic, given it is with Italy’s 1982 World Cup-winning captain that Buffon is so often compared. “Two absolute leaders,” Galli says, “men guiding the whole team.”
Buffon has had his ups and down, most infamously in 2013 when Franz Beckenbauer labelled him a “pensioner” after a costly mistake in Juve’s Champions League quarter-final loss at Bayern Munich. Yet here he is, once again the No.1 goalkeeper in the world, the highest-ranked shot-stopper in the 2016 Goal 50, after a year where he claimed another domestic double and starred at Euro 2016.
His sustained excellence is truly astounding and, David Trezeguet argues, unique. “He’s the best goalkeeper of all time,” his former Juventus team-mate David Trezeguet declared in March. “I don’t see anyone who has had the continuity Buffon has had for the last 20 years.
“That he is still playing at such a high level [at 38] is indeed truly remarkable. I cannot explain how he does it,” Trezeguet confessed.
Meanwhile, former Italy coach Antonio Conte admitted: “Finding the words to describe Gigi is tough.”
But then, why bother? As Buffon has proven once again over the past 12 months, actions speak far louder than words.
