Wednesday, 12 May 2021: Gianluigi Buffon has revealed that he will leave Juventus at the end of the season and could even retire from football.

The 43-year-old goalkeeper’s contract expires at the end of the season and he is mulling over his next move, which could be to bring the curtain down on his glittering 26-year career as a professional.

Speaking to beIN SPORTS, Buffon said: “This year my experience in Juventus will end definitively.

“Either I stop or I find a stimulating situation.”

Serie A side Atalanta, who are currently second in the Italian standings, are believed to be an option for Buffon should he choose to carry on playing but they are expected to make a full decision once the season is over.

Alternatively, Buffon could remain at Juventus in a coaching capacity.

It is expected to be a summer of upheaval at the Turin club, with manager Andrea Pirlo under immense pressure and widely expected to be sacked at the end of the season.

Juve were beaten 3-0 by AC Milan on Sunday – a game where Buffon played – and the result knocked them out of the top four in Serie A.

A lack of Champions League football is now a very real possibility for the Italian giants, who have three Serie A matches remaining against Sassuolo, champions Inter Milan and Bologna.

Buffon’s departure will mark the end of his second spell playing for Juventus.

After joining them in 2001 from Parma, Buffon left in 2018 and spent a season with Paris Saint-Germain, where he won the French league.

He returned to Juve in 2019.