Former Juventus and Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon has penned a touching tribute to his long-standing club and international teammate Leonardo Bonucci, who confirmed his retirement from the sport at the age of 37 on Wednesday evening.
Bonucci announced in an emotional video that he would be hanging up his boots, as his contract with Fenerbahce had been due to expire at the end of the 2023-24 season. He played the latter half of the season in the Turkish Super Lig after a short-lived spell in the Bundesliga with Union Berlin.
To little surprise, Buffon was among the first to wish Bonnuci well in the next chapter of his life, with a long message posted to social media on Wednesday evening.
Buffon’s message to Bonucci
“As happened to Barza, to me and then finally to Chiellone, your retirement brings a feeling of melancholy to the soul, one that makes us proud of what we were, but at the same time, makes us stand still in the knowledge that time is passing away,” Buffon wrote on X.
“However, it is in that past where we find certain feelings and emotions, having travelled side-by-side on this journey, where our common factor was mutual trust. Each of us trusted each other, and thanks to that trust, we created an important part of football history.
“Great Leo, my companion in many battles, with that confidences, I know you will look to the future with your usual determination.”
Buffon, who himself retired just shy of a year ago, still has an important role to play for the Italy national team ahead of EURO 2024 this summer, as he is part of Luciano Spalletti’s non-playing staff.
Come è successo a Barza, a me ed infine al Chiellone, il tuo ritiro riaccende una malinconia nell'animo, che ci rende orgogliosi per ciò che siamo stati, ma allo stesso tempo ci lascia immobili di fronte al tempo che scorre via. Tuttavia, è proprio in quel passato che troviamo le… pic.twitter.com/FC1kwimFtM
— Gianluigi Buffon (@gianluigibuffon) May 29, 2024