Azzurri’s last man standing still playing his own game

By David Shonfield

Saturday, October 10, 2009

ITALY’S goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is famous for not giving anything away to opponents but Czech model Alena Seredova still laughs about their first date, when he invited her out to dinner but then confessed that he’d left his wallet at home.

The couple are expecting their second child next month. Their first, N’Kono, will be two in December. It’s not a usual name for an Italian, but Buffon has never been a conformist.

While other kids supported the big fashionable clubs — Milan, Inter, Juventus — Buffon was and is a Genoa fan. When it came to the 1990 World Cup in Italy, the 12-year-old decided to support Cameroon. He can still recite the names of the team from memory — starting with the goalkeeper, Thomas N’Kono.

From that summer on the youngster was determined to be a goalkeeper. Blessed with some natural physical advantages — his mother was a discus thrower, his father a weight lifter and his two sisters are volleyball players — he signed his first professional contract for Parma just five years later and made his debut in Serie A at the extraordinarily young age of 17.

It was a home game against Milan. He kept a clean sheet.

His first cap for Italy came only three years later, when he replaced the injured Gianluca Pagliuca against Russia, and at the age of 23 his transfer to Juventus set a record fee for a goalkeeper which could remain unchallenged for many years to come.

Titles, honours, a World Cup winners’ medal, captaining his country in his 99th international — it sounds like an untroubled climb to the top, but it hasn’t always been like that.

There have been political gaffes, notably his choice of shirt number, 88, which is associated in some people’s minds with Adolf Hitler (he changed to 77). There was his period of depression in 2003, a crisis which led him to ask the then manager of Juventus, Marcello Lippi, to leave him out of the side for a match against Reggina.

And there was his serious gambling problem which came out into the open at the same time as the investigations into match fixing and corruption three years ago. Buffon was gambling on horses rather than football (which is banned for Italian players). On one occasion he staked as much as €500,000.

Family support got him through — together with the psychological help that he had resisted. "I wrongly thought psychologists were just money-grabbers," he said. "But if you find a serious, competent professional, his help can change your life."

But after the World Cup triumph came disgrace and relegation for his club — and that in turn was followed by serious injury problems in 2008.

Several top players left Juventus when they were obliged to drop into Serie B, and others were thinking of leaving. Buffon’s decision to stay had a big impact on the waverers, and on his reputation.

That show of loyalty cemented his position as a national figure, which has been enhanced since his successful return from the sidelines last January.

There had been fears that Buffon’s back and knee injuries might affect his game permanently. But while he still has a slight knee problem, he has come back possibly better than ever.

Dino Zoff, who was Italy’s goalkeeper and captain at the age of 40 when they won the World Cup in 1982, says: "Gigi is a phenomenon. Physically he is the prototype of the modern player.

"In Italy today there are few worthwhile keepers coming through because there’s little attraction in exposing yourself to abuse, the media are always ready to pillory you, and it’s less risky playing up front and missing chances.

"The lack of keepers isn’t about skill, it’s about courage. Buffon is the exception. He has no lack of courage, and talent does the rest."

Buffon’s early season form has been almost faultless, notably in the two wins against Roma and Lazio in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico. Juventus have conceded six goals in seven league games, but none of them down to the keeper. Last Sunday against Palermo he was beaten twice but saved Juventus from a much heavier defeat.

Does Buffon have any weaknesses? Not many according to the man he replaced in the Italy side.

Gianluca Pagliuca rates Buffon as perfect in the air, not just because of his height and strength but because of his "courage, reactions and sense of timing, all honed by experience.

"He’s been directing defences since the age of 17. He’s a natural leader, even among players who might have more charisma. You can hear him shouting from the stands."

THERE used to be doubts about his speed off his line and his ability with his feet, but Pagliuca believes that training has enabled him to improve his skills.

"Also Claudio Ranieri’s use of offside tactics when he was in charge at Juventus meant that he often had to use his feet outside the penalty area. Maybe dealing with low crosses is the one part of his game where he used to be better. I would still give him high marks, but he’s a little less perfect when the cross comes in on the ground."

Against both Georgia and Bulgaria Buffon demonstrated tremendous alertness, reacting brilliantly to unexpected threats — one a defensive back header that could easily have been an own goal, the other a snap shot at the near post from a corner.

As he says himself, this is often what separates great goalkeepers from the merely very good: "I think in general games are about a tension between chance and rules, that’s what keeps the attention alive: the desire and the possibility of breaking the rules, of being lucky or of seeing something unexpected. Every time I start playing I really don’t know what will happen, especially because my position as a goalkeeper is very much about observing, waiting, and then reacting at the right moment. No matter how much I practice, I am unable to control the whole situation and I really enjoy this uncertainty."

This appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Saturday, October 10, 2009