Marchisio pays emotional tribute to departing Buffon

Saturday's Seria A game against Verona will be Buffon's last in a Juve shirt, having represented the 'Old Lady' with pride since 2001.

Though Buffon could yet continue his professional career, Marchisio took to social media to pay tribute to his team-mate with a photo of the pair celebrating winning the 2012 Serie A title.

In a moving Instagram post, Marchisio thanked Buffon for helping him bed in as he progressed from the youth team into the senior squad and hailed his inspirational leadership.

"Dear Gigi, the images of your press conference continue to scroll by on the screens. Every time, despite the fact I know how it ends, I hope for a different epilogue," he wrote.

"When you arrived, I was little more than a child with many dreams and clear ideas, knowing well the value of carrying the bag for those who were bigger than me.

"From the start you, Alex (Del Piero), Pavel (Nedved), Mauro (Camoranesi) and David (Trezeguet) set the example and taught me what it means to wear the Bianconeri jersey. With her you stepped down into Hell and with the tenacity of those who never give up, you took her back to Paradise.

"Following you every day, I understood the player I wanted to be and the values that would accompany my life as a man.

"Everyone in life meets people who they receive far more from than they can ever give back, and you are one of those figures for me.

"Your words were always on point, but at times you just needed a glance. The same glance that today I'll meet for the last time in the locker room.

"The way you loved our colours will remain inspirational for entire generations. The latest replay of your press conference just concluded. No good, it's always the same ending."

 

A post shared by Claudio Marchisio (@marchisiocla8) on May 19, 2018 at 12:27am PDT