Gianluigi Buffon's Set To Play For Juventus Until He's 44-Years-Old

Gianluigi Buffon is set to sign a new contract with Juventus - with sources claiming he's prepared to carry on playing until he's 44-years-old.

The Italian goalkeeper is 42-years-old right now and Tuttosport have reported he's set to sign a new one year deal with the Turin outfit.

However, the publication claim Buffon extending his contract beyond 2021 'is not to be excluded' with his career length potentially spanning 27 seasons.

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Former teammates Fabio Cannavaro and Francesco Totti have claimed their fellow World Cup winner will keep playing until his club 'make him stop'.

"I'll tell you; Gigi wants to play until he's 50. But he can play for two or three more seasons.

"Besides, he's in goal and is a back-up," Totti told former Italy captain Cannavaro on Instagram.

Cannavaro also discussed Buffon's elite mentality and said that 'he won't want to stop'.

"Well, you'll know it. He won't want to stop, but they will make him stop, which is very different," the former Ballon d'Or winner stated.

Buffon himself revealed last year that he dreams of being able to play until the age of 80.

"I'm still dreaming at 41", he told La Stampa.

"When you dream, it's nice to see yourself in so many different situations. I need enthusiasm. Last year I thought about retiring but it created too much negativity.

"That's why I dream about staying on the field until I'm 80, when I'm an old man in goal with a walking stick and the No.1 on my back."

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Buffon made his debut for Parma against AC Milan all the way back in 1995 and the rest is history.

He moved to Juventus in 2001 for €52 million, a then-world record fee for a goalkeeper.

His time with the 'Old Lady' has seen him win nine Serie A titles in addition to four Coppa Italia's and achieving World Cup glory in Italy.

Buffon departed Juventus for Paris Saint-Germain in 2018 and although he added a Ligue 1 title to his trophy cabinet, he returned to Juve last summer on a free transfer.

Topics: Football News, Football, Gianluigi Buffon, Juventus, Francesco Totti

Daniel Marland

Daniel is a journalist for SPORTbible and he has previous experience with Manchester United. He has spoken to some of the biggest names in sport including Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch, WWE COO Triple H and WWE legend The Undertaker. May or may not do a decent impression of Jamie Carragher.

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