5 eras that came to an end in the 2017/18 season

#3 The end of Gianluigi Buffon?

Gianluigi Buffon could retire at the end of the season

For everything Gianluigi Buffon has won, there is also heartbreak. The Italian goalkeeper has won the World Cup but lost in the final of the Euros. He has won plenty of Serie A titles but never a UEFA Champions League trophy.

Now 40 years old, his retirement has been coming for a while. Hoping to lead the Azzurri for one last time at the 2018 World Cup, their hopes were dashed and ended in tears when they failed to beat Sweden in the playoffs during the qualifiers.

Although he had virtually announced his retirement from the international game, he still returned to the squad for friendlies in March.

"I can still be useful. I might be 40 but I’m the goalkeeper of Juventus." - Buffon

His Champions League dream ended in a game against Real Madrid with a red card for dissent and manhandling the referee.

Nevertheless, with his 11th Serie A title virtually sealed, Buffon will end the season with 23 trophies for Juventus (20) and Parma (3). Add the 2006 World Cup to that tally too.

Whether he changes his mind and carries on for one more season remains to be seen, but after seeing him in four different World Cups from 1998 to 2014, we will not see him in a fifth - unless he is still at the top of his game at 44!

300! @gianluigibuffon has now kept 300 clean sheets for @juventusfcen in all competitions! pic.twitter.com/1fnvqnce8k

— Sportskeeda Football (@SK_Football) May 11, 2018