GIANLUIGI BUFFON THANKED Juventus for giving him the “splendid gift” of being able to play in the same team as Cristiano Ronaldo following the goalkeeper’s return to the club.
Buffon left Juve last year and spent a season at Paris Saint-Germain, before turning down the opportunity to remain in Ligue 1.
It soon became clear Buffon’s next destination was to be Turin once again, having spent the best 17 years of his career with the Old Lady.
The 41-year-old signed a contract that will expire in 2020 and he is particularly excited about the chance to call Ronaldo his team-mate.
“It’s beautiful,” he told reporters when asked about playing with the former Real Madrid star.
“At the end of my career I was able to play with Neymar and [Kylian] Mbappe thanks to Paris Saint-Germain, now it will happen with Cristiano Ronaldo thanks to Juventus.
I think that for players with my experience and with my history, to be able to end the career in such a way is a splendid gift.
In his last spell at Juve, Buffon was captain following the departure of Alessandro Del Piero in 2012, while he also donned the number one jersey.
That #FridayFeeling 🤩 #WelcomeBackGigi pic.twitter.com/XFj3XNKjXa
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen) July 5, 2019
He was offered both of those by respective incumbents Giorgio Chiellini and Wojciech Szczesny, but Buffon gratefully declined, adamant he is not back in Turin to step on anyone’s toes.
“I would like to thank Szczesny and Chiellini, who offered me the number one jersey and the captain’s armband,” he added.
“I am here to contribute as I have always done, not to take anything away from someone. The first-choice goalkeeper of Juve must have the number one and Giorgio, who is my brother, must be captain.
“I took number 77, which is in my history and in the history of Parma. That was the shirt that took me to Juventus and it was something that inspired me.”
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