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Gianluigi Buffon believes Iker Casillas has been the best goalkeeper of his era but deems Petr Cech as “the most complete” overall shot-stopper according to Marca. He also mentioned a host of other goalkeepers and their strengths when he spoke to the Spanish outlet.
Buffon has completed 20 years in the top flight of the game, but even with countless honours and endless clean sheets, the 37-year-old believes that there is one goalkeeper of his generation that bested him. Obviously the Italian is far too humble to name himself as the best. Even at this age the Italy and Juventus goalkeeper has not ceased to perform at top level, and despite the abundance of young talent, has remained the No.1 choice for both club and country.
“The best goalkeeper of my era has been Casillas. He’s always been the best with his hands,” Buffon told Marca.
“In recent years, Cech and [Manuel] Neuer.” He added
“The best goalkeeper with his feet? Pepe Reina. In the air, I’d say, Neuer. With his hands: Casillas. The best overall I’d say is Cech. The best goalkeepers of all time? I’ve heard so much about [Ricardo] Zamora, [Lev] Yashin, [Dino] Zoff, [Gordon] Banks, [Sepp] Maier.
Buffon, in his 20 years of career has been one of the most decorated goalkeepers in the history of football. Here is what Casillas and Petr Cech have said about Gigi Buffon in the past.
Casillas: “He has my admiration and maximum respect. For goalkeepers that are a little younger than him he has been a reference, he has driven us and we wanted to be like him.”
Petr Cech: “Gigi has a unique personality which not only affects his team-mates, but also his presence and leadership sometimes led his team to victory. He is a goalkeeper who becomes the key man for his team during key moments, who can trust him with their eyes closed. I have great respect for him.”
Despite Juventus’ poor form at the start of the season, Buffon’s class has stood out and the Bianconeri are slowly making their way back up the Serie A table and could perhaps launch a bid to retain their title.
Inter Milan currently lead the Serie A pack and Juventus are 9 points behind them with the likes of Napoli, Fiorentina and Roma the biggest names standing between the two, but no one would bet against Max Allegri’s men.
