The son of Juventus and Italy goalkeeping great Gigi Buffon, Louis Thomas has decided to go with the Czech Republic, the nation of his mother, over Italy.
At 17, Buffon Jr is already playing senior football for Serie B Pisa. He is with the Czech Republic U18 squad this week for a youth tournament which includes ties against England and France.
“I was very happy to come to the meeting and curious about the different football culture,” he told the official Czech Republic football federation website.
“I spoke with my family and together we decided that it would be better for my football career and my development as a player to play for the Czech Republic.
“My mother, of course, was very happy, but my father was also excited because it was my first call-up for the national team.”
He also explained: “I don’t speak Czech very well yet, but as soon as I found out I could come here, I started learning it. I spend about 10 minutes on Duolingo every day.”
Asked how he will approach facing Italy, Buffon added: “I was born and raised in Italy, but I think that in order to be a 100 per cent professional and do my job as well as possible, every match has to be important for me, whether it is against Italy or any other national team