WATCH: Gianluigi Buffon shows his class as Italian fans boo Swedish anthem

Understandably, the atmosphere was tense ahead of Italy's crucial World Cup qualifier with Sweden on Monday night.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, all those in attendance at Milan's San Siro were well aware that there was a very real possibility that Italy, four time world champions, would be missing out on a place in next summer's tournament in Russia. Gianluigi Buffon, who has said he will retire from football after the next World Cup, also received plenty of attention prior to kick-off. With Italy's hopes of qualification in the balance, many were also aware that this was quite possibly his final appearance for his country. As the Swedish anthem was drowned out by boos and whistles from the Italian crowd, the cameras briefly cut away from the away team to focus on the Juventus goalkeeper, who, in response, chose to applaud the anthem - a gesture that went down extremely well with many of those watching. https://twitter.com/photosofootball/status/930162314627731456 https://twitter.com/scot_munroe/status/930159118853332993 https://twitter.com/IainClark38/status/930161625516199936 https://twitter.com/Abou_Sidra_/status/930159186662567936 https://twitter.com/Harry20Cork/status/930159024628264960 https://twitter.com/DevnDevs/status/930159472680431617 https://twitter.com/hobsonffc/status/930160502931644416 Just when you thought you couldn't love the bloke any more.