Europe's best goalkeeper? Gigi Donnarumma is showing he can be Gigi Buffon's rightful heir with unbelievable PSG performances

PSG picked up four free agents in the summer of 2021: Lionel Messi, Gini Wijnaldum, Sergio Ramos and Donnarumma. For all of the fanfare surrounding Messi's arrival at Parc des Princes, Donnarumma actually looked like the more significant deal from a purely sporting perspective.

He was still only 22 (a baby in goalkeeping terms!) and arrived in Paris just days after being named Player of Tournament at Euro 2024, which Italy won thanks in no small part to Donnarumma's decisive displays at Wembley, against Spain and England. He was unquestionably perfectly placed to become PSG's No.1 for years to come.

The only problem was that they still had Keylor Navas on their books, resulting in the Chilean and Donnarumma effectively sharing the goalkeeping duties during the 2021-22 campaign. Clearly, something had to give, and Navas was unsurprisingly the man to make way. However, the wisdom of that decision was repeatedly questioned in the French media, primarily due to Donnarumma's discomfort with the ball at his feet.

PSG's implosion at Santiago Bernabeu on March 9, 2022 was by no means their most painful Champions League capitulation - but it was a horrible night nonetheless for Donnarumma.

Having beaten Los Blancos at home with an injury-time winner from Kylian Mbappe, Mauricio Pochettino's team looked almost certain to progress to the quarter-finals when their jet-heeled French forward netted again just before half-time in the second leg. However, in the 61st minute, Donnarumma dallied on the ball, allowing Karim Benzema to deflect the ball into the path of Vinicius Jr, who immediately teed up his team-mate for a tap-in.

PSG predictably went to pieces, allowing Benzema to complete a hat-trick as they bowed out 3-2 on aggregate, leaving Donnarumma devastated.

In much the same way as he had consoled Donnarumma after a couple of howlers in the 2019 Coppa Italia final, Buffon was quick to defend his compatriot.

"Errors like that are useful to grow up, they are part of a developing process and I am sure it will have no negative impact because Donnarumma has already proved to have the strength to overcome the difficult moments," Buffon told the Corriere dello Sport.

"He is too strong to be affected by all this. Gigio is one of the best goalkeepers in the world, one of the top three along with Thibaut Courtois and Manuel Neuer."

Buffon was certainly right about one thing: Donnarumma had sufficient strength to put his Madrid mishap behind him. And the support of his mental coach Nicoletta Romanazzi also helped in that regard.

"One thing I've learned is how to react to errors rather than successes," Donnarumma told the Gazzetta dello Sport. "I always thank Nicoletta because she helps me focus on myself and not think about external elements. Seeking help is no weakness; on the contrary, it makes you stronger.

"The goalkeeper role is one of the most difficult but also the most beautiful. One of my strengths is remaining focused despite some errors. If you think about them, you are dead... People have the right to talk, but an opinion can’t determine a goalkeeper’s value. I am calm, especially because I can learn from mistakes."

That they kept happening, though, became a real cause for concern in Paris.

In one particularly disastrous week for Donnarumma during the 2023-23 season, he made three mistakes in three games.

Against Monaco, he gifted a goal to Takumi Minamino with a misplaced pass. Three days later, he was at fault for Newcastle's opener in a 4-1 Champions League loss at St James' Park. Then, to top it all off, he got himself sent off in a game against Le Havre for a reckless foul outside his area that left Luis Enrique doing his utmost to deflect attention away from Donnarumma.

"Gigio did what I asked of him. I ask the goalkeeper to cover [the final third], so if someone is responsible, it's me," the Spaniard said. "Most of the time, it goes well. When it doesn't go well, though, the problem lies with me."

Of course, the fact of the matter is that Luis Enrique, like so many coaches of his generation, wants a goalkeeper who can not only stop shots, but start attacks - and while Donnarumma excels at the former, he struggles with the latter.

Consequently, there have been constant rumours that PSG are considering selling the Italy international this summer and replacing him with Lille's Lucas Chevalier.

The timing of the transfer talk obviously feels strange, given Donnarumma's popularity in Paris has never been higher. Put quite simply, PSG would not be on the verge of reaching the Champions League final without him.

In the last-16 win over Liverpool, Donnarumma reminded the world why he's regarded as the worst possible opponent in a penalty shootout, while Luis Enrique had one word for his second-leg heroics against Aston Villa in the quarter-finals: "sensational".

As for last week's win over Arsenal at the Emirates, Vitinha was named Player of the Match, but the Portuguese gave his prize to Donnarumma and labelled the Italian PSG's "MVP" for making two crucial saves, the second of which, from Leandro Trossard, was absolutely extraordinary.

If he manages to keep Arsenal at bay again on Wednesday, Donnarumma will be one step closer to doing something that Buffon never managed: lifting the European Cup. Whether that would see the 26-year-old recognised as the greatest goalkeeper in the game today is very much open to debate, particularly in light of the modern obsession with ball-playing No.1s.

But as AC Milan icon Alessandro Costacurta recently said of Donnarumma's critics, "They say he isn't the best when he has to come off his line, but they always forget to mention that he's the best in the world at everything else!"