22 December 2014
There was no hiding the disappointment as Gianluigi Buffon addressed the media following tonight's Italian Super Cup defeat to Napoli.
It was a game Juve lost in spite of the No.1 producing a series of heroics, denying the opposition from 12 yards and on several occasions during the 120 minutes.
"How can you save three penalties and still lose a final?" he was asked in the aftermath.
"It can happen and unfortunately it happened to us today," came the sombre reply. "It's a real pity because we had three golden opportunities to win it but couldn't take them."
He added: "We must give due credit to Napoli though and congratulate them. They kept believing and managed to get themselves out of a fix and pull it off."
The skipper shared Massimiliano Allegri's regret at the Bianconeri's lack of attention in the final minutes, which is what proved to be their undoing this evening.
"I think it's natural that if you're winning with a few minutes to go you focus on defending the lead. It's just that we weren't quite careful enough. A team that wants to win the match can't go and let in that equaliser."
With the Doha final drawing the curtain on 2014 it was only natural that talk should then turn to the achievements of the past 12 months.
Buffon told RAI Sport journalists: "Yes, it's been a fantastic calendar year, really satisfying for us. Sadly it ended with us coming second in a competition that we really wanted to win, and for Juve second place means defeat."
The Italy man then looked ahead to new horizons, explaining that tonight's loss will only motivate the team further.
He finished by saying: "We weren't able to lift a trophy we'd hoped to win but that will make us even angrier and even more determined if we find ourselves in a similar situation in future."
