A true great of the game, Gianluigi Buffon was a truly sensational goalkeeper who enjoyed a magnificent career. Spending 17 years with Juventus, where he won 10 league titles, five Italian Cups, and six Italian Super Cups, the Italian legend was one of the best in the world for a number of years. Winning the World Cup in 2006, Buffon was a great shot-stopper, as well as being very quick off his line, which made him very difficult to play against.
As someone who knows goalkeeping better than nearly anyone else, the Italian picked out who he thought were the finest goalkeepers in the world in 2022. Speaking to DAZN via Planet Football, he selected five players who he thought were the best, and we will be taking a look at where they are now.
Gianluigi Buffon Related
Gianluigi Buffon Named 2 British Stadiums Among 3 Favourite Grounds He Played in
Buffon was lucky enough to travel the globe with his job, and there were three stadiums outside of Italy that really stuck with him.
Mike Maignan
Current club: AC Milan
Mike Maignan France
Speaking in 2022, Buffon said: “I congratulated [Paulo] Maldini for buying him, when I was in Paris he impressed me."
A great goalkeeper in the modern era, Mike Maignan was back up to Hugo Lloris in the France national team in 2022, but is now firmly number one. A product of the PSG academy, before spending six years with Lille, Maignan is now at AC Milan at 29 years old.
With Milan currently having a poor season in Serie A, the French keeper hasn't had his best year, but still remains one of the best in the world.
Jan Oblak
Current club: Atletico Madrid
Jan Oblak
Joining Atletico Madrid in 2014, Jan Oblak has been one of the best goalkeepers in the world almost since the moment he moved to Spain.
Picked out by Buffon in 2022, Oblak remains at the elite level, and has kept the most clean sheets in La Liga this season, as he continues to excel. Ironically, he was supposedly Juventus' target to replace Buffon in 2017, however that move didn't materialise, and he is still in the Spanish capital today.
Manuel Neuer
Current club: Bayern Munich
Manuel Neuer for Germany at Euro 2016
Certainly one of the greatest goalkeepers of all-time, Manuel Neuer has done it all. Having been at the top of his game for over 10 years, the German won the Champions League in 2013, and the World Cup in 2014. Buffon said in 2017:
“[Neuer is] physically strong and confident. He gives his team calmness with his aura, is great with the ball on his feet and makes impossible saves.”
The perfect modern goalkeeper, Neuer has helped to revolutionise the position due to his speed off his line and ability with the ball at his feet.
Gianluigi Donnarumma
Current club: Paris Saint-Germain
Donnarumma
Once dubbed 'the next Buffon', Gianluigi Donnarumma burst onto the scene as a teenager at AC Milan.
Perhaps not quite as good as he once promised to be, the Italian, who is still just 26 years old, is now at PSG. A very good goalkeeper on his day, he is Italy's number one, and was pivotal to his country's European Championship triumph in 2021.
A penalty specialist, he still has a long career ahead of him, as he looks to cement himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
Thibaut Courtois
Current club: Real Madrid
Thibaut Courtois
Selecting Belgium's number one Thibaut Courtois as the best in the world in 2022, Gianluigi Buffon's opinion may still be the same today.
A special goalkeeper, Courtois is considered by many to still be the best around, as he continues to win trophies with Real Madrid. Capable of doing it all, he is a special goalkeeper who has had a fantastic career.
Helping Real Madrid to the 2022 Champions League with a man of the match display in the final, Courtois has continued to go from strength to strength.
Real-Madrid-Thibaut-Courtois Related
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Thibaut Courtois has a strong argument for being the number one goalkeeper on the planet - but who does he think are the best around?