Legendary and World Cup-winning goalie Gianluigi Buffon has hinted when he might retire from professional football. From the responses he gave, the 44-year-old goalkeeper is not ready to quit the game any time soon.
According to Gianluigi Buffon, he could continue playing for another 11 years. The former Juventus goalkeeper who is now with Parma said: “I could retire at 55.”
As of the time of publishing this report, the goalkeeper is 44 years old and has also agreed to extend his current contract with the Serie B club Parma by another year.
A player who helped Italy win the World Cup in 2006 sees no reason to put his gloves away any time soon, and any conversations of retiring are likely to be put on hold for the foreseeable future.
After his second stint at Juventus came to an end in the summer of 2021, Buffon made 26 appearances for Parma.
At a press conference before the 2022–23 campaign, he told reporters: “I could retire at 55, I spent 10 years at Parma in my first life, then 20 at Juventus.
“I’ve been thinking about retirement for 10 years, but I’ve always continued. I’ve had important experiences that helped me to know the world of football, but I am not sure I will remain in this world after retirement. Perhaps I could try something else.”
The Italian legend, however, didn’t reveal the next path he will follow after retiring from the world of football but he might follow most of his colleagues and remain in football probably as a coach.
Gianluigi Buffon has played with most of the best players in the world, both retired and those who are still playing. Buffon was a teammate with five times Ballon d’Or winner and current Manchester United star player Cristiano Ronaldo during his time with Juventus.
However, he has never played with Cristiano Ronaldo’s rival Lionel Messi but has faced him many times. The two players (Messi and Ronaldo) have a total of 12 Ballon d’Or awards amongst them and are regarded as the best players in the world.
But Gianluigi Buffon refused to name who is the best between Ronaldo and Messi. While speaking during the news conference, Buffon was asked to react to the Greatest Of All Time (GOAT) debate and he said: “I’ve never played with Messi, so I can’t reply.”
According to the legendary goalkeeper, champions are also seen inside the dressing room and the focus should be on the menu rather than the footballers.
Gigi Buffon is incredible. The all time great. pic.twitter.com/o1oYIGreNo
— Italian Football News 🇮🇹 (@footitalia1) June 15, 2022
