Italy and Juventus goalkeeper, Gianluigi Buffon, on Thursday announced that he
will leave the Turin giants after 17 years but did not as expected declare the
end of his playing career.
Buffon,
40, captained Juventus to a seventh straight Serie A title and fourth
consecutive Italian Cup triumph this season.
“To
end this adventure with two new victories was important,” the Italian told a
press conference at the Allianz Stadium.
“Saturday
will be my final match with Juventus.”
The
former Parma goalkeeper will make his 640th Serie A appearance against Verona
in Turin.
Buffon
said he would like to take more time to reflect on his future which could be either
on or off the pitch.
“What
am I going to do? Saturday, I’m playing a match and it’s the only thing that’s
certain,” he continued.
“Until
15 days ago, I was sure to stop playing, but I received some exciting
proposals, both on and off the pitch. Off the pitch, the most interesting was
made to me by (Juventus) president (Andrea) Agnelli.”
“Next
week, after a few days of calm reflection, I will make a definite and certain
decision.”
According
to the Italian press Buffon has received offers from top European clubs
including Liverpool, Real Madrid and Paris Saint Germain.
It
was a rollercoaster season for Buffon with Italy failing to qualify for the
World Cup finals for the first time in six decades.
His
final Champions League game ended in another fiasco last month as he raged into
the night at the referee after being sent off late in a semi-final defeat by
Real Madrid.
He
is facing a UEFA ban for his verbal abuse of English referee Michael Oliver who
he said had “a rubbish bag for a heart” and should “sit in the stands with your
wife, your kids, having your drink and eating your crisps”.
Italy’s
most capped player with 176, Buffon could make his international farewell on
June 4 in a friendly against the Netherlands.
Buffon
holds the record for going 974 minutes in Serie A football without conceding a
goal and has kept 300 clean sheets in 655 competitive club matches.
AFP
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