From the publisher: ‘He wore number one. He was the number one. He truly is one of one’ James Horncastle, Serie A reporter for The Athletic ‘A superb and revealing autobiography’ John Foot, author of Calcio: A History of Italian Football 'Few could debut at seventeen against that Milan and keep a clean pair of shorts, let alone a clean sheet, but Gigi did' James Richardson, The Totally Football Show _____________________ On 19 November 1995, the world learned the name Gianluigi Buffon. At the tender age of seventeen he made his Serie A debut for Parma against European giants Milan, facing down the likes of Roberto Baggio and George Weah, keeping a clean sheet. During his twenty-eight-year long career Buffon broke many records including: - The most capped goalkeeper of all time and the most appearance for Italy (176)- The most Serie A titles (10)- The longest time in Serie A without conceding a goal (974 minutes) The numbers, however, only tell half the story of a player famously nicknamed “Superman” for his athletic prowess. In Saved Buffon reveals that even superheroes struggle with their inner demons. Beyond his individual triumphs with Parma, Juventus and PSG – the famous World Cup win in 2006 – Buffon reflects on his deeply human challenges off the pitch. He describes being devoured by depression between games and the psychological toll of being a goalkeeper – the loneliest position in football - often finding solace in talking to his gloves. He opens up about his gambling, smoking during matches and the strains on his relationships which became fodder for the press. Buffon’s are the struggles of a man whose talents and flaws co-exit. Saved is both a meditation on the art of goalkeeping and a love letter to the golden age of Italian football. The author: Gianluigi Buffon is a former professional footballer. He began his career at Parma before joining Juventus in 2001 in a £32.6m deal – a world record for a goalkeeper at the time. Buffon spent most of his career in Turin, except for a season at Paris Saint-Germain in 2018-19 where he won Ligue 1, before returning to Juventus and then to Parma in June 2021 where he ended his career. He announced his retirement at the age of forty-five, and then became the head of the delegation of the Italian national team with whom he won the World Cup in 2006. --- Viking 24 x 16 cm Hardback 224 pages April 2026 English 9780241787137
