Superman returns: Buffon back at Parma after 20-year absence
Gianluigi Buffon is back where it all began.
The 43-year-old goalkeeper completed his return to Parma on Thursday after signing a two-year contract with the recently relegated club. He left Parma for Juventus in 2001 and, with the exception of a one-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain, spent the past two decades with the Turin giants.
(Source: @1913parmacalcio)
"From the first moment I shared the idea of a return to Parma with Gigi, I understood from looking him in the eyes that it was an emotional one for him," said Javier Ribalta, Parma's managing director of sport.
"He is committed, he wants to work, he knows this place - Parma is his home. We are proud that we can count on him. Seeing him come back to the club where his incredible career began will be a beautiful thing, and we know there are more pages still to write in his story."
Buffon had numerous other offers after leaving Juventus this summer but was most intrigued by the prospect of returning to the Serie B club, according to The Guardian's Fabrizio Romano.
The Italian icon made his Parma debut against AC Milan in 1995 when he was just 17 and naturally kept a clean sheet in the encounter.
When Gianluigi Buffon made his first Parma debut (against AC Milan), Franco Baresi also played. Think Baresi can keep up his 100 percent record of playing in Buffon's Parma debuts. Although he is now 61.
— Richard Jolly (@RichJolly) June 17, 2021
Buffon won the UEFA Cup, Coppa Italia, and Supercoppa Italia at Parma before hoarding 10 Scudettos, five Coppa Italias, and six Supercoppa Italias at Juventus. He also won the Ligue 1 title during his PSG stint.