Juventus icon Gianluigi Buffon will go down in history as one of the best goalkeepers of all time. However, even the best players in the world have an Achilles heel. In a career that spanned almost three decades, the goalkeeper faced some of the best players in the world. However, when picking his toughest opponents, there were two players Buffon feared facing: Cristiano Ronaldo and Christian Vieri. During an interview, the Italian short-stopper commented on his battles against the two forwards.

With a career this long, it’s never easy to maintain your composure through all the ups and downs. During the same interview, Buffon talked about the rough times in his career, where he felt like he was no longer the player he used to be!

Buffon names Cristiano Ronaldo and Christian Vieri as his toughest opponents

Italian fans will always remember Gianluigi Buffon as a beast between the sticks. However, even the invincible fortress had trouble with some players during his career. In an interview with TuttoJuventus, Buffon labeled Cristiano Ronaldo and Christian Vieri as his most formidable opponents.

The 45-year-old revealed, “There have been many [players I feared]. The ones who scored many goals for me are [Christian] Vieri and Cristiano Ronaldo. Every time he saw me, he marked me. He had a cynicism and an extraordinary quality of achievement.”

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Buffon then added, “[Cristiano] approached me and said, ‘Well, at 33, 34 years old, not bad, eh Gigi?’ At that point, I started laughing because really his brazen way of representing himself, which in the end represented reality, didn’t represent something different.” [Translated by Google]

Buffon had an illustrious career which saw him rack up multiple accolades. However, despite having a highly decorated resume, the player faced some challenging phases in his career that left him doubting his caliber.

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Gianluigi Buffon speaks about the rough patch in his career

During the same interview, the former Italian short-stopper commented on times when he felt like failing to get out of a depressed state of mind, all at the age of 25. Buffon opened up about his feelings, stating, “Signs of great mental and physical laziness and, being always an enthusiast, I have always allowed myself a few days of Down Syndrome and considered it physiological. Then I saw this thing here that continued over time and started to become a month or two months. And at that point, I got scared because I no longer felt like I was the Gigi I knew.“

It is interesting to see players slowly opening up about their feelings. In a sport like soccer, where showing an unbreakable front has always been applauded, listening to players talk about their vulnerabilities is undoubtedly a step in the positive direction.

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