The best goalkeeper in the world delighted the journalists present at the Media Center in Vinovo by giving a rather long press conference during which he answered a wide array of questions from those about his career to the chances of Juventus winning an important title this year, from the cold weather to his imminent return in official matches.
A comment about the weather to “warm-up” the conversation...
"These days the temperature is ideal to remain integral. It keeps us well, this cold. It is important to remain young and make sure we’re careful especially seeing how we did last year after the return from the holidays".
For how long do you plan to keep playing?
"I am not one of those who like giving out comments sporadically. As long as I am ok I’ll keep on playing. I think I can play for quite some more time. I don’t know up to when but as long as I’m doing well I will go on".
Are you fully-recovered? When will we see you back on the pitch?
"I plan to play for one half in Messina and the match in Coppa Italia. We’ll see about Siena. I am available but then its up to Ranieri. If he prefers Alex for now so that I can train better it’s up to him".
What did you think of Manninger’s performances during your absence?
"Alex was very clever because I don’t think its easy replacing me especially during the patch we were going through. He did very few mistakes. The defence did well but he was clever because he was always ready".
Any particular matches you would have liked to play in particular?
"I really wished to play two matches: one of the matches against Real Madrid and the one against Inter at the San Siro. Last year we won one and drew the other and I wished to contribute and continue this series. It was a match I would have never wanted to lose.
But life is like this. There were other times when I was injured and would have liked to play but I always managed to get my revenge at the end so the important thing is being ready".
The team however did well notwithstanding the many injuries...
"The team was clever because like Manninger in such a delicate period and living a certain type of situation their reaction was great. I was surprised because of the period we were going through. We lost a lot of players and the future didn’t seem nice but the players who were fielded played well and they managed to overcome this".
Will Buffon make a difference now that he is back?
"At the end of the day I am considered as an important player so I hope I will make a difference so that we can win something".
Is Inter really that unbeatable? Are they the favourites?
"Inter is what we expected. Many say that if Inter win the scudetto this would be the least for Mourinho, so I think after the titles won it would be very clever of them to adapt to a new coach and win again. Mancini after all did very well. Inter favourites? The squad is superior to others.
Juventus is a great team which is doing great in the championship and can gain lots of satisfaction playing some trick on Inter if the latter slips. The best do not always win. Brazil would have won 30 world titles not only just 1 more then us if it were so".
What about the Buffons of the future...?
"There are a good number of young goalkeepers. Some time ago I went to meet young goalkeepers in Coverciano and spoke with people like Bordon who said something really intelligent: “You must not try to be Buffon but you must be yourselves” We cannot go looking for another Buffon., Every goalkeeper must try being himself".
Are you an exceptional player? What about Ibrahimovic?
"There are always exceptional players. Even without Buffon the team did really well. In years to come there might even be somebody better then Buffon who will make his debut in the Serie A at 15 years of age instead of at 17 like Buffon.
Yes Ibra is an exceptional player but Inter have many good players and he is not the only one. Even though when you’re in difficulty he is the type of player who will have the right ball".
How do you see this Juventus?
"Juventus is a good team. In fact without certain players the team did very well anyway. Even we must have thought that without us the team would find more difficulty but we were proven wrong and this is something great. Inter without Ibra would find themselves in more difficulty".
Does England tempt you? Wouldn’t you want to try playing somewhere else?
"Buffon sometimes reads articles and smiles because things that are written make me proud because I am a goalkeeper not an attacker or a great midfielder. It makes me happy that people speak of me but I am a person with my feet on the ground and I haven’t fantasy football for some time.
There is nothing true about huge sums offered for me. Today is the 3rd of January and I wouldn’t like to speak of myself as a hero at the start of a new year. I don’t like speaking of myself and my career because I prefer to look ahead and continue playing at top level".
Is Juventus a strong enough team?
"Juventus is the team which can beat anybody. When you have certain players and you know their character then things are more clear and I am convinced of this. To win the scudetto you need consistency which we have. It is not easy though because of Inter’s advantage so we must hope that they slow down and we keep this pace".
Scudetto or Champions League?
"After a year or two in which we won a Serie B championship we are all eager to win something. Obviously the maximum would be the Champions League and we all want to win it. Besides the Juventus fans would like to celebrate such a victory. The more difficult the cup the more you want to win it.
I surely think that we can play against anyone and win against anyone. It is up to a certain extent easier to win the Champions League for the type of matches we’re playing. I wouldn’t like to choose at the moment. The Champions League returns in February so up to then we have to try and reduce the margin and then after that perhaps we will have to choose".
What do you think of the draw against Chelsea?
"In respect to the last 4 or 5 years it is a Chelsea with some more problems compared to others years but in the UCL things are different because certain problems are left behind when you play such a trophy. I think that in these two months up to the return of the Champions League we must think of not losing more ground then with the UCL things may change maybe in a positive way for us and a negative way for Inter so then we would have to be careful in order to take advantage".
What do you think of Amauri? He seems to have settled in well immediately?
"I think last year we saw what he was capable of doing. We knew what his qualities were but when you join a team like Juventus it is not easy. The impact can stop you but he was clever scoring many goals, important goals and having great consistency in performance".
Juventus.com
04 Januari 2009
Wawancara dengan Gianluigi Buffon
Buffon kepada Inter: klub hebat tak selalu menang
Usai menghabiskan beberapa bulan di meja perawatan akibat cedera bahu, dan menyaksikan tim tampil baik tanpa dirinya, kiper Juventus Gianluigi Buffon (foto) siap tampil lagi.
Penjaga gawang nomor satu Italia ini tak sabar segera bermain dan mengirimkan pesan untuk pimpinan sementara Serie A Italia sekaligus musuh bebuyutan, Inter Milan.
"Kami sadar saat ini Inter lebih tangguh dari siapapun," ujarnya. "Mereka pantas mendapatkan penghargaan dari upayanya sepanjang beberapa tahun ini."
"Tapi kami tim yang tak kalah baiknya dan tim terbaik tak selalu menang dalam sepakbola, kalau tidak Brasil sudah sukses menjuarai 30 kali Piala Dunia. Kami akan mengejutkan mereka."
Menurut Buffon, periode jadwal yang bertepatan dengan agenda Liga Champions juga sangat penting.
"Kami tak boleh mengalami kekalahan lagi, kalau tidak akan sulit bersaing. Mudah-mudahan mereka kehilangan beberapa poin saat itu," ujarnya.
Juventus tertinggal enam poin dari Inter saat ini. Partai pertama Bianconeri tahun ini adalah menghadapi Siena di kandang sendiri, sedangkan Inter akan menjamu Cagliari.
Lippi: Del Piero Akan Terus Mencetak Gol
Di usia yang sudah mencapai 34 tahun, jarang sekali seorang penyerang masih tetap subur dan sangat berbahaya di depan gawang lawan. Hal itu tak berlaku bagi Del Piero . Meski sudah memasuki usia senja bagi seorang pesepakbola, ia masih menjadi pemain inti di lini depan dan mampu mencetak banyak gol.
Bukan saja masih produktif, ia juga pantas disebut sebagai pemain terbesar yang pernah mengenakan kostum Juve, yang juga salah satu klub terbesar di Italia dan bahkan dunia.
Musim lalu, Alex menjadi Capocannoniere alias top skor Serie A dengan 21 gol, unggul satu gol dari rekan setimnya, David Trezequet. Di musim ini, Trez yang lebih muda dari Alex justru masih dibekap cedera.
Menurut Lippi, performa Alex semakin meningkat dibandingkan musim lalu dan akan tampil lebih baik lagi dalam beberapa pertandingan mendatang.
"Alex sudah mencetak lebih dari 250 gol bersama Juve. Menurut pengamatan saya, sebelum pensiun ia akan mencetak lebih dari 300 gol," ucap pria yang pernah menangani Juventus ini melalui Sky Sports.
"Dia memberi pesan khusus bahwa pada usia 34 tahun, ia belum pantas untuk pensiun. Alex justru makin tampil bagus dan mengisyaratkan akan terus mencetak banyak gol." Meski memuji, Lippi belum mau memastikan apakah ia akan memanggil kembali Alex ke timnas Italia.
Secara total, Alex sudah mencetak 252 gol bersama Bianconeri. Ia membutuhkan 48 gol lagi untuk mencapai angka 300. Bisa mencapainya, Alex?
