Son of Legendary Italian Goalkeeper Buffon to Represent Czech Republic
Louis Thomas Buffon, the 17-year-old son of Italian football legend Gianluigi Buffon and Czech model Alena Šeredová, has been named in the Czech Republic’s U-18 squad for its first training camp of the year. The Pisa midfielder, who holds dual citizenship, has received his first international call-up under head coach Václav Jílek. The Football Association of the Czech Republic (FAČR) confirmed the squad selection on its official website today. While his father made history as a World Cup-winning goalkeeper with Italy in 2006, Louis Buffon has taken a different path, playing as a midfielder in Pisa’s youth academy. Although he has only featured in Italy’s Primavera junior league so far, he was included in the senior squad for the first time last weekend. During Pisa’s Serie B match against Cesena (1:1), Buffon remained on the bench but gained valuable experience. Interestingly, Pisa’s head coach is Filippo Inzaghi, a former Juventus teammate of his father. The Czech U-18 national team, led by Václav Jílek, is set to reunite for the first time since November, when they played two friendlies against Austria, losing 0:2 and winning 1:0. Buffon isn’t the only foreign-based player called up for the squad. Defender Timothy Akindileni of...