Juventus legend Gianluigi Buffon reveals he lost £9MILLION in ‘biggest mistake of his life’
JUVENTUS legend Gianluigi Buffon has revealed he gave up almost £9million in the “biggest mistake” of his life when he left PSG.
The 45-year-old, widely seen as one of the greatest goalkeepers ever, ended his 17 year long association with Juve to head to Paris in 2018.
Iconic keeper Buffon made his first senior appearance back in 1995Rex
But he would be back with the Old Lady within a season after taking issue with the French club’s selection policy.
The keeper, winding down his career with Parma in Italy’s second division, has revealed he now totally regrets the decision.
Speaking on a Twitch stream, he told former Italy team-mate Christian Vieri: “Leaving was the biggest mistake of my life, I gave up €10million (£8.8m).
“They told me that [Alphonse] Areola would play in the Champions League and I didn’t accept it. For me, the one who deserves it plays. That’s why I returned to Juve.
“Then I regretted it , because Areola was injured and they signed Keylor Navas in his place!
“[Paris] was the most beautiful experience of my life. I felt like a free man. I quickly learned French, talked to people on the street, visited museums… I had the feeling of playing in a great team.”
Buffon was also convinced that the team he was a part of – which included the likes of Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Angel Di Maria and Dani Alves – were “superior” and reveals his disappointment at their Champions League knockout to Man United.
PSG won 2-0 at Old Trafford in the first leg before Marcus Rashford‘s stoppage time penalty at the Parc des Prince made it 3-1 to the Red Devils and gave them an away goals win in 2019.
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Buffon added: “I was convinced, we were superior. We went to Manchester to play the first leg of the round of 16 with United and we dominated, but they eliminated us in the second leg.
“That was the biggest disappointment of my career.”
Now back at his former club Parma, Buffon revealed he will retire at the end of next season when his contract retires.
He said: “I would like to retire after next season, no more. I am competitive and I don’t want to be considered a back-up keeper.”
