WELL ON STAT ATTACK
GIANLUIGI BUFFON will not have any problems getting the drinks in if he finally wins the Champions League on Saturday night.
The Juventus and Italy legend now has his own wine business.
Buffon is on the label and whether it is red, white or rose, the goalkeeper’s company can provide fine wines – Italian, of course.
And when it comes to the day job, Buffon is a fine shotstopper.
Now 39, Buffon still holds the record as the most-expensive goalkeeper in the world at £32.6million.
That record has stood for 16 years, since he moved from Parma to his beloved Juventus.
Buffon has won everything in his career – even the World Cup – EXCEPT the Champions League.
His last near miss was two years ago, when Juve were defeated in the final in Berlin by Barcelona.
And now another famous Spanish club stands in his way – and this time it is the greatest European Cup side of them all.
Real Madrid will be striving to create more history in Cardiff.
If they win, they will become the first club to successfully defend the trophy since the European Cup format changed and it became the Champions League 24 years ago.
To prevent Real achieving their goal, Buffon will have to deny Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale – if picked to play in his home city after injury – and the rest of the stars from the Galactico club.
What is certain, though, is that there will not be a cooler player on the pitch than Buffon.
The Juventus No.1 said: “The thing I find the most satisfying about being a goalkeeper is the feeling of calmness you can transmit to your team.
“When they know they have you behind them, that’s a sort of power. It makes you feel special.
“We are a team with an extreme calmness, clarity and awareness about the difficulties we could face and we know how important it is to be mentally sharp.
“I do what I feel like doing on the pitch. You don’t get quite that involved in every match – not every game makes you produce so much adrenaline and competitive power.
“But there are moments when it is good and it can help the team. It is also good to see team-mates who have this same sporting aggression.
“My career has been a long one and over the years there have been a lot of decisions to take.
“I take those decisions based on my feelings and on my way of life. To come to the Champions League Final with the whole club and all our fans is great and something really rewarding.”
Buffon admits Juve are probably the underdogs – just as they were against Barcelona in 2015.
But he shrugs that off as Juve attempt an Italian League and Cup and Champions League treble.
He said: “Could it be an advantage to be the underdogs? I don’t know. But I’ve definitely had more satisfaction winning when it has been as an underdog.
“Being favourites, though, makes you feel pretty good as well. I don’t have any problems with that, either.”
And when asked what else he brings to the team, the amiable Buffon says with a laugh: “I am an expert!”
That clearly includes being so on the subject of wine too. And he will be bidding to put in a vintage display at the National Stadium of Wales.
The Leicester hitman came from the same humble beginnings, working his way up from grassroots football with a few quid in his pay packet.
But Vardy (right) was rewarded with fame and riches and hailed as a champion with 16 appearances and six goals for his country.
Now Wells, 26, is 90 minutes away from Premier League stardom of his own as Huddersfield take on Reading at Wembley tomorrow in the £200million shoot-out to join the elite.
The Bermudan belter began his career with the strangely-named Dandy Town Hornets and Bermuda Hogges before working his socks off in his big breaks at first Carlisle (pictured far right) and then Bradford City. Wells has been triumphant at Wembley before with the Bantams in a League Two Play-Off Final four years ago.
He would now love it if history repeated itself and he could take another giant step on the Vardy stairway to football heaven.
A self-confessed Manchester United f an, Wells said: “Does t he Jamie Vardy story inspire me? It does.
“Which is why I really believe that players like myself do deserve opportunities like that. “Because no one would have expected him to go from being a non-league footballer to scoring 20-odd Premier League goals and playing for England in such a short space of time. “That is the ultimate fairytale and I’m looking to go one step closer to it. “To get my foot in the Premier League door and then to try and do what he’s done and go to the Premier League and hit the ground running. “You know, he is a late bloomer as well. He’s doing it in his late 20s and early 30s so there’s still time for me. There are still opportunities there.
“This game on Monday means everything and it could be the difference in me being able to do it and not being able to do it.
“This was always the dream. It was one I always thought was possible. But at times you do doubt that dream will come to a reality.
“Minor setbacks on your route happen. But to come from playing local football at the age of 20 and then being offered a professional contract at 21, to be playing a domestic cup final at 23 and then to possibly be a Premier League player at 26, it’s all remarkable.
“It’s all happened in a short space of time but it’s what I have been dreaming about since I was young.
“It’s in my own hands and it’s one I can’t pass up.
“It’s been a benefit coming up the hard way. Some of these players don’t know what it’s like to play in a League Two match. Or not making a