Manchester United, Liverpool players fail to make Gianluigi Buffon's best Premier League XI
Arguably the greatest goalkeeper of all time, Juventus legend Gianluigi Buffon has been a busy man recently having broken the Serie A clean sheet record on the weekend before he penned a heartfelt letter to the goal he’s defended for the past 25 years.
Needing just over three minutes to break the record against Torino on Sunday, Buffon went 974 minutes without conceding a goal and added a further 44 minutes to the record, but finally conceded a late goal in a 4-1 win.
But Buffon’s latest endeavour will leave the red halves of Manchester and Liverpool red-faced as the legendary goalkeeper failed to name a single Manchester United or Liverpool player in his best Premier League XI.
Speaking to ShortList, Buffon instead heavily favoured Manchester City and Arsenal players in an attack-minded 4-3-3 formation, with two Chelsea players and one Tottenham playing making up the rest of the XI.
Here is Buffon’s XI:
Goalkeeper: Joe Hart
Choosing Joe Hart as his first choice keeper, Buffon praised the England and Manchester City number one for his consistent improvement over the years and labelled him as “one of the top three goalkeepers in the world”, something we’re sure Hart would love to hear from the Italian legend.
What Buffon said:
“The Premier League has a lot of top-class goalkeepers, but I have been watching Joe for many years and he has just kept on getting better and better. For me he is now one of the top three goalkeepers in the world.”
Defence: Azpilicueta – Koscielny – Kompany – Zabaleta
It’s hard to argue with Buffon’s choice of defenders, though his pick of Azpilicueta at left-back is questionable considering Chelsea’s horror run of form earlier in the season. Despite their poor run, Buffon praised Azpilicueta for his reliability.
“Chelsea are not enjoying their best season, but this is another defender who you can always rely on to give you a good performance,” Buffon said.
Picking Koscielny and Kompany as the two centre-backs, Buffon claimed the two players were the best defenders in the league and said Kompany’s recent spell on the sidelines highlighted his importance to Manchester City.
What Buffon said:
(On Koscielny) “The sort of defender that, as a goalkeeper, you are confident in. Calm on the ball, very strong and, most of all, composed in all he does. Along with Kompany, he is the best central defender in England.”
(On Kompany) “Probably the best defender in England and Manchester City have missed him. To get him back at this stage of the season is so important for them.”
Choosing Zabaleta at right back, Buffon said the Argentinian was often under-rated due to the fact his consistent performances have now become expected of him.
Buffon on Zabaleta:
“One of those players that you know will always give you a good performance. They can be overlooked so often, because people just expect them to have a good game, it has become normal.”