Gigi Bouffon does not intend to hang up the crampons anytime soon. The Italian goalkeeper, far from a retirement, decides to continue to ensure the cages, by signing in Parma, a club he knows very well.
Legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is back at his childhood club Parma on a two-year contract after a 20-year absence. The 43-year-old Italian legend said in May he would leave Juventus at the end of the season after his contract expired in June.
“Parma Calcio 1913 can confirm that it has reached an agreement with Gianluigi Buffon for a contract that will sign it at the Club until June 30, 2023. Thus, exactly 20 years after his last match for Parma, Gigi will once again wear the colors of Gialloblù. He does this after winning pretty much everything there is to gain in the game.“, Wrote the Italian club in a statement.
Buffon first played for Parma 26 years ago, aged 17, and kept his clean sheet on his debut against Fabio Capello’s AC Milan.
With Parma, Buffon played 220 matches between 1995 and 2001, winning three trophies: UEFA Cup, Italian Cup and Italian Super Cup (1999). ” In Italy I could only play Juve and Parma“, He confided in early May.
Buffon is considered one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. He has played more than 1,000 games in his professional career and holds the record for the longest streak without conceding a goal in Serie A.
With 176 international caps, he is the most capped player in the history of the Italian national team. He won the World Cup with Italy in 2006 and, with Juventus, has won the Serie A title 10 times and has 12 Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year titles to his name.
Buffon finished second in the Ballon d’Or in 2006, won Serie A Footballer of the Year in the 2016-17 campaign and was selected as FIFA’s best goalkeeper in 2017.
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