Azzurri’s last man standing still playing his own game

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.