Well, I just bought the magazine and there's an interview with Gianluigi Buffon!
I want the lot
The Juventus and Italy keeper tells Keir Radnedge about his plan to sweep the board this season
Gianluigi Buffon believes Juventus, after the upset of their Champions League Final defeat, have made the changes that will guarantee "near perfection." That, in turn, could allow them to win everything they pursue this coming season.
You have made a great start already: Juventus won the Italian Supercup against Milan in NY, you were man of the match in Italy's 1-0 friendly win in Germany and were then voted UEFA's Player of the Season. Can it get any better?
Only when we win both the Champions League and the Italian League this season. I'm very proud of the UEFA award. It's not usually goalkeepers who get these prizes.
Do you resent that it's usually attackers who get the adulation?
No, great forwards deserve their high profile because they score the goals that win the big matches - like in the Germany friendly. Beating the World Cup runners-up is always an achievement, especially in front of their own fans. The flip side for the attacers is that when things go wrong they are also the first to get the blame.
Remembering Italian fans' reaction after the World Cup fiasco, don't you think you have come a long way in a year?
True, but I'm not the sort to do my dirty washing in public. The players were to blame in Korea and I always admitted that. OK, there were isues about injuries and substitution but it was dishonest to heap all the blame on Trapatonni. If a coach gets his team selection wrong then I'm the first to say so. But that was not the case in Korea.
What are your realistic targets for the season ahead?
The same as ever: to win everything again. It may sound naive but its true. It's no good starting a season thinking that you are going to lose some matches. That's not a professional attitude. Anyway, I really don't see why we shouldn't win everything. Last season we won the League and reached the CL final. Just a little more luck and we would have won both. So we can do it. It's within reach.
Have you put the CL final defeat behind you?
You can't wipe a defeat like that out of your mind. The sense of disappointment was enormous. The only positive thing is that it makes you appreciate winning much more. For example, the Italian supercup may not be the greatest trophy in the world but its something positive to start the season from a psychological point of view - even if we did it on penalties. It was also important for us to prove we can beat Milan in one-off matches.
But presumably you would still prefer to have won the penalty shoot out in Manchester last may?
I would have preferred to have won on penalties in both Manchester and NY. The most ironic thing is that in Manchester I stopped one penalty more than in NY... and we lost. But I didn't come to Juventus to lose anything but to win every competition we enter- CL, Italian League, Italian Cup and the Italian Supercup.
You have some new teammates at Juventus. Whodo you rate as the best new signing?
I don't have to choose the team. The coach does that. He does his job, I do mine. I know players like Fabrizio Miccoli from playing against him last season. All I can say is that I'm glad he is on our side now!
So would you say Juventus are a better side than ever?
Maybe there's just a little way to go yet to reach perfection- but we're working on it! I would even say that anyone who meets us in Europe or in Serie A must beware because we have two teams as good as each other.
Your favourite players?
Paolo Maldini and Michel Platini outfield players, the Cameroonian Thomas N'Kono and Dino Zoff for goalkeepers. Zoff was not just a player but a footballing monument. When you talk about Italian goalkeepers, his is the only name that matters. He won everything going- he's my inspiration .
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World Soccer Oct 2003 issue. I know its outdated, but I just bought it. Man, my fingers are sore.
I want the lot
The Juventus and Italy keeper tells Keir Radnedge about his plan to sweep the board this season
Gianluigi Buffon believes Juventus, after the upset of their Champions League Final defeat, have made the changes that will guarantee "near perfection." That, in turn, could allow them to win everything they pursue this coming season.
You have made a great start already: Juventus won the Italian Supercup against Milan in NY, you were man of the match in Italy's 1-0 friendly win in Germany and were then voted UEFA's Player of the Season. Can it get any better?
Only when we win both the Champions League and the Italian League this season. I'm very proud of the UEFA award. It's not usually goalkeepers who get these prizes.
Do you resent that it's usually attackers who get the adulation?
No, great forwards deserve their high profile because they score the goals that win the big matches - like in the Germany friendly. Beating the World Cup runners-up is always an achievement, especially in front of their own fans. The flip side for the attacers is that when things go wrong they are also the first to get the blame.
Remembering Italian fans' reaction after the World Cup fiasco, don't you think you have come a long way in a year?
True, but I'm not the sort to do my dirty washing in public. The players were to blame in Korea and I always admitted that. OK, there were isues about injuries and substitution but it was dishonest to heap all the blame on Trapatonni. If a coach gets his team selection wrong then I'm the first to say so. But that was not the case in Korea.
What are your realistic targets for the season ahead?
The same as ever: to win everything again. It may sound naive but its true. It's no good starting a season thinking that you are going to lose some matches. That's not a professional attitude. Anyway, I really don't see why we shouldn't win everything. Last season we won the League and reached the CL final. Just a little more luck and we would have won both. So we can do it. It's within reach.
Have you put the CL final defeat behind you?
You can't wipe a defeat like that out of your mind. The sense of disappointment was enormous. The only positive thing is that it makes you appreciate winning much more. For example, the Italian supercup may not be the greatest trophy in the world but its something positive to start the season from a psychological point of view - even if we did it on penalties. It was also important for us to prove we can beat Milan in one-off matches.
But presumably you would still prefer to have won the penalty shoot out in Manchester last may?
I would have preferred to have won on penalties in both Manchester and NY. The most ironic thing is that in Manchester I stopped one penalty more than in NY... and we lost. But I didn't come to Juventus to lose anything but to win every competition we enter- CL, Italian League, Italian Cup and the Italian Supercup.
You have some new teammates at Juventus. Whodo you rate as the best new signing?
I don't have to choose the team. The coach does that. He does his job, I do mine. I know players like Fabrizio Miccoli from playing against him last season. All I can say is that I'm glad he is on our side now!
So would you say Juventus are a better side than ever?
Maybe there's just a little way to go yet to reach perfection- but we're working on it! I would even say that anyone who meets us in Europe or in Serie A must beware because we have two teams as good as each other.
Your favourite players?
Paolo Maldini and Michel Platini outfield players, the Cameroonian Thomas N'Kono and Dino Zoff for goalkeepers. Zoff was not just a player but a footballing monument. When you talk about Italian goalkeepers, his is the only name that matters. He won everything going- he's my inspiration .
-----------
World Soccer Oct 2003 issue. I know its outdated, but I just bought it. Man, my fingers are sore.
Buy on AliExpress.com
I think the title should go to us jointly... 4 posts in and we're talking about balls :undecide:
