Gianluigi Buffon has suggested that he is ready to shelve retirement plans once again, with the Juventus goalkeeper seeing no reason to hang up his gloves.
The World Cup winner is now 41 years of age, with another birthday approaching at the end of January.
He has, however, seen regular minutes since returning to Turin from Paris Saint-Germain over the summer.
An eighth appearance of the season was taken in on Wednesday, with a Serie A outing against Sampdoria seeing him draw level with AC Milan icon Paolo Maldini.
Buffon has now figured in 647 games in the Italian top flight, with a notable record about to be secured.
It could be that he raises the bar considerably higher over the coming years, with there no plans to walk away from a side that is chasing down more major honours at home and abroad.
After helping to secure a 2-1 win over Sampdoria, Buffon told Sky Sport Italia: “Record Serie A appearances for Juve? The reason I keep playing is that I can give myself, along with my team-mates and this club, many beautiful emotions that are worth living.
“The most important thing today was to win and try to finish the year, at least in the league, at the top of the table.
“The thing that most interests me personally, more than the games, is the role I can play that here at Juve with my team-mates, staff and managers.
“The 648th game? If I get to play it, I hope it is still with Juve at the top of the table.
“With regards to the future, I let life show me the way: at this moment I would do myself an injury if I thought I would stop playing, because I feel I am a point of reference, beyond the games that are played.”
Serie A has shut down for the winter break, but Juve still have one more game to take in this year.
There will be silverware on the line when they face Lazio in the Supercoppa Italiana on Sunday.
Buffon has lifted that trophy on six previous occasions – five times with the Bianconeri and once with Parma.