Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci have been a solid rock in the heart of the Italian defense for a long time and have finally proved their supremacy in the world
Whenever there is a conversation about great defenders, Chiellini and Bonucci’s name pops up without any surprise as both the players have formed a formidable defensive pairing dominating world football for a long time in terms of strong defensive performances.
Another player in the mix was Andrea Barzagli who is regarded as one of the best and most consistent defenders of his generation alongside Chiellini and Bonucci. These three players formed a wonderful defensive pairing that was unbreakable.
Chiellini and Bonucci ruling the backline for Italy
Both the players were involved in the EURO 2012 which was their first tournament as Italy’s defensive pairing alongside veteran Barzagli. Italy managed to reach the final of the tournament in which their defense was their strongest point but conceded 4 goals in the finals against Spain.
Their partnership was recognized by the whole world and everybody knew who was the real deal in defense. Both the players had an extremely well tournament that season and replicated their good form for their club.
Both the players have a combined 229 appearances for Italy and have kept 58 clean sheets for the Italian national side. Both the players were untouchables in the national careers as they were regarded as the best center-back pairing of all time.
Chiellini and Bonucci domestic success in the Serie A
36-year-old Giorgio Chiellini came to Juventus in 2004 and has since made 535 appearances for Juventus in all competitions scoring 36 goals. Leonardo Bonucci joined the club in 2010 and has made 442 appearances for the club in all competitions scoring 30 goals.
Both the players have won 8 consecutive Serie A titles with Juventus which was a golden era for the club in which they enjoyed domestic supremacy over every opponent. They won 4 Coppa Italia and 5 Supercoppa Italian.
They managed to reach the UEFA Champions League final on two occasions but were runners-up twice as they were not able to establish their defensive supremacy in Europe. These players are gems of the Italian team with so many good memories between them as they have played together for such a long time.
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