1,000, that is the number that legendary goalie Gianluigi Buffon will be hitting in terms of senior appearances throughout his career. It will be his 168th appearance for the Azzurri, which continues to add towards his record. He has been at the top with winning the World Cup in 2006 and at the bottom with group stage eliminations and a tough loss to Spain in the 2012 Euro Finals.
Through it all he has maintained his position at the top and he looks to continue that pace going into Russia next year.
As of right now Italy are tied with Spain with 10 points each in-group G for UEFA World Cup Qualifiers. They face off against an improving Albania side that made it to the Euros last season for the first time ever.
Albania is looking to enter their first ever World Cup but, have been off to a rough start in the group stage, they currently sit in fourth with six points total so far.
They had two victories in their first two games against Macedonia and Lichtenstein, with Bekim Balaj being the scorer in both of those games.
This is the first time that these two countries will be meeting one another in a meaningful fixture, the only other time they have linked up was back in 2014 when Italy won 1-0 with a goal from Stefano Okaka.
Prediction:
Italy’s star power and world class defense will prevail in this match-up. Although Italy has a tendency to struggle against inferior competition they will grind this one out.
Score: 2-0