New Delhi. Legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, who won many trophies with Juventus apart from the World Cup title with Italy, announced his retirement from competitive football on Wednesday at the age of 45. Buffon, once considered the best goalkeeper in the world, had one year left on his contract with Parma in Serie B. He started his professional career with Parma nearly three decades ago. Buffon wrote on Instagram on a video showing the highlights of his career, “The journey is over friends. You gave me everything. I gave you everything. We did it together.”
The pinnacle of Buffon’s career came in 2006 when he conceded just two goals in seven matches during Italy’s World Cup triumph. Neither of those goals came from normal play, one being an own goal by teammate Cristian Zaccardo and the other a penalty by Zinedine Zidane in the final.
Buffon won 10 Serie A titles with Juventus. However, Buffon could not win the Champions League title in his career. The Juventus team under his leadership reached the Champions League final three times but lost every time.
FIRST PUBLISHED : August 2, 2023, 21:23 IST