Juventus' Gianluigi Buffon breaks Maldini's appearances record
Legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made his 903rd appearance for Juventus in Saturday's clash with SPAL to eclipse Paolo Maldini's record.
Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon revelled in his record-breaking appearance after eclipsing Paolo Maldini for playing the most games at club level. Buffon – back in Turin after a season with Paris Saint-Germain – made his 903rd appearance for Juventus in Saturday's 2-0 Serie A win over SPAL to break Maldini's appearance record.
Buffon, 903 games and counting...
The 41-year-old Buffon matched Maldini's record in last week's victory against Hellas Verona before returning to the bench for Tuesday's trip to Brescia, however, the Juve star was back on the field for the visit of SPAL. After surpassing fellow Italian great Maldini, Buffon told reporters: "It's a great satisfaction, I wasn't aware I was so close to this record two games ago, I found out at the last game. I was told I had reached Paolo [Maldini]. It makes me very happy and very proud, proud for what I did, but as I said to your colleagues, I am happy because I got here not dragging myself, but as a high-level player. That's what I think I can say without being presumptuous. Therefore I also added, earlier on, that I will always thank my parents and my wife, who have always been benevolent with me, but I can also say that there's something of my own in all this."
A year at PSG
Buffon returned to Juve during the summer after a one-year spell at Ligue 1 champions PSG, having also previously represented Parma. Unlike Maldini, who spent his entire career with Serie A rivals AC Milan, Buffon's appearances have been spread across three clubs.
He played 220 matches for Parma at the start of his career, was used 25 times in a largely underwhelming campaign with PSG last time out and has now featured 658 times for Juventus.