He seemed to be playing forever. Now he is retiring. Gianluigi Buffon has for many decades personified Italian and world football. He won almost everything and received national recognition for his game and charisma. It is doubly pleasant that Russia has made its modest contribution to the career of the greatest goalkeeper. What links Buffon to Russia?
Kanchelskis launched Buffon's career In the fall of 1997, the Russian team contested a ticket to the World Cup in play-offs with formidable Italians. The then composition of the Azzurra Squadra was full of big names — Alessandro Nesta, Paolo Maldini, Demetrio Albertini, Fabrizio Ravanelli, Alessandro Del Piero, Dino Baggio and many others. The Italians had no problems in the position of the first number, where Gianluca Paluca shone. Our team, in addition to character and luck, had to rely on the vile October weather in Moscow — snow and rain turned the lawn of the Dynamo stadium into a swamp.
In one of the episodes of the first half, the leader of the Russian national team, Andrei Kanchelskis, collided with Palyuka, but so unsuccessfully that the Italian had to be changed. It was under such circumstances that the 19-year-old Buffon made his debut for the Italian team. The young and little known to the general public goalkeeper played confidently and even saved his team several times, allowing it to take away an important guest draw — 1:1. Buffon did not play in the second leg, but the Italians got a minimal victory and went to France instead of us.
“The first moment can only be my debut for the national team in Russia, in shocking climatic conditions,” Buffon recalled in an interview with the Italian media. “The snow was unimaginable, the field is dirty. You can’t imagine worse conditions for a debut. the final part of the World Cup — 1998. I came on as a substitute, and after 5-6 minutes I had to make the most important save, it was really hard. Entering the game in such a cold was not easy, but this only confirms that psychological readiness can be more important than physical » .
After that game, hardly anyone could have imagined that the public saw the birth of a new great goalkeeper who would wear the national team jersey 175 more times and set one of his countless records. This opinion is also shared by Boris Ignatiev, who from 1996 to 1998 led the Russian national team.
“It was such an important match that you only think about what is under your feet. I only found out at the end of the game how old Buffon is, that he is just starting his career, that he is just shaping himself. this is a master, I don’t undertake, and I don’t want to, because it will not be true.Then, as time passed, it became clear that the Moscow dirt, our team, together with the fans, made this person feel what football really is. not a toy or fun, but a very important thing. Let's brag all together that we helped shape such a great athlete and such a great master of his craft,» the specialist emphasized in an interview with .
Buffon returned to Russia very soon, but under more comfortable weather conditions. On May 12, 1999, in the Moscow Luzhniki Stadium, Parma, with the already fairly seasoned and famous Gianluigi at the gate, beat the French Marseille 3-0 and won the UEFA Cup. We can say that it was on the main arena of Russia that the long and successful club career of the Italian superstar started.
Comparisons with Yashin and recognition of Akinfeev As the years went by, Buffon exponentially increased the number of trophies and fans, which logically led the football community to the question — maybe the Italian is the greatest goalkeeper in history? Of course, even earlier football was not deprived of skillful and charismatic goalkeepers, but they could not be compared with the Soviet legend Lev Yashin. But already at the beginning of the 21st century, Buffon was increasingly compared with Yashin, the discussion flared up more and more.
On this issue, the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS) made a compromise, recognizing Yashin as the best goalkeeper of the 20th century, and Buffon as the best goalkeeper in the world since 1987. But Lev Ivanovich has something that the Italian counterpart will never have — the most prestigious Golden Ball award.
“Yashin, of course, was exceptional, one of the greatest players, but I think the fact that he was from a country that people didn’t know much about helped him. At that time, people heard a lot about him, but the way he played, seen only a few times. I think that this mystery was added to the legends about him that people heard, «Buffon said in 2014 in an interview with the official FIFA website.
Yes, comparing these two megastars is not entirely correct: different eras, different football, different techniques. Therefore, Russian fans soon began to draw parallels between Buffon and Igor Akinfeev. Both have been on the same list of top goalkeepers in the world for a long time, both have devoted the best years of their careers to one club (Juventus and CSKA respectively), both stand out for their stability on the field and restraint off it.
«I would compare Akinfeev with Buffon, and in many ways — in terms of skill, stability, professionalism in relation to himself, the club, his business. No one can understand what stressful situations the goalkeeper is in, who can cross out all the team initiatives of one black line, one mistake. These are people who are in a minefield. Igor and Gianluigi have been like this all their careers, and they always left the minefield with dignity, and even if something happened, they did not throw themselves into hysterics and, like good artists, bowed and left, knowing that tomorrow was the next concert,» said Ignatiev.
It is worth noting that Buffon and Akinfeev are very familiar and do not hide warm feelings towards each other. So, in November 2021, Gianluigi personally congratulated Igor on the 800th match in his career:
«Congratulations, Igor, on this important achievement. Move forward, good luck in the future. Chao, Gigi,» says Buffon in the video. Gianluigi. You are a real legend, you have more than 1000 matches behind you, I will catch up.»
Later, the Italian once again spoke warmly about the legend of CSKA and the Russian team.
“He (Akinfeev) was and remains a great goalkeeper. I remember when I spoke with Fabio Capello, he told me that there is a very strong goalkeeper in Russia. It is important for me to say this because he deserves it,” Buffon said on air YouTube channel of Nobel Arustamyan.
Could Buffon be in Russia? It was at such moments that various rumors appeared that Gianluigi could leave Juve for other top clubs. Despite the status of one of the best goalkeepers in the world, the media at various times wrote that Buffon could even be in the Russian championship. Among other things, it was reported about the Kazan «Rubin», as well as the capital's «Spartak» and «Locomotive».
And the most interesting thing is that some of the rumors were confirmed. For example, here is what the former goalkeeping coach of Rubin, and now a member of the coaching staff of the Russian national team Vitaly Kafanov, recently said.
“It turned out that only a year has passed since we hired Sergei Ryzhikov, and it went well for him. 28 years old, he hasn’t played, he’s still not on his feet. «We bet. If he makes a mistake again, then we bet? Well, of course, we bet. Because this is Buffon. And then Ryzhikov would have no chance, like anyone who would have been in his place. The agent told us that if we say «, then he will come. I don't remember what year it was. My heart broke when we refused. Of course, I doubted whether I was doing the right thing,» Kafanov said on the air of the Comment.Show YouTube channel.
In response upon request, Buffon's agent Silvano Martina commented on the information about the interest of Russian clubs, which they allegedly previously showed to Gianluigi. «Honestly, he didn't have any contact with Russian clubs. Perhaps they didn't think about it, because he was already playing in a top club,» he admitted.
Summing up his client's long career, Martina called Buffon the best goalkeeper of the world:
“Without any doubt, he was the strongest goalkeeper of all time. His story speaks for itself, he was at the highest level for 30 years, no one has ever done this. Yes, there were great goalkeepers, but at the top of the pedestal the best stayed for four or five years, but he stayed for at least 20!».