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Tag: Dani Alves

  • Dani Alves Marries Spanish Model Sanz in Secret Wedding

    Dani Alves Marries Spanish Model Sanz in Secret Wedding

    Dani Alves has married his partner Joana Sanz in a secret wedding ceremony in Ibiza, as he edges closer to a move to Manchester City.

    Alves wedded Sanz in a romantic ceremony on the Spanish island, with the former Barcelona right back choosing to wear a white suit to match his beautiful bride.
    City are confident of signing Alves, who is a free agent after leaving Juventus at the end of the season, despite late interest from Paris Saint-Germain.
    Sanz is a Spanish model who has appeared in campaigns for high-end brands such as Jimmy Choo and fashion magazines including Elle.
    The stunning 23-year-old has amassed more than 346,000 followers on Instagram and regularly posts photos of her and Alves together.
    Though his personal life is happy and stable, Alves’ professional future is still yet to be decided following his departure from Turin.
    Alves was expected to attend a medical at City this week and sign a two-year deal with Pep Guardiola’s side.
    And despite PSG’s late bid for his services, City remain confident they have an agreement with the Brazilian international.
    Alves retains a close bond with City boss Guardiola, who managed him at Barcelona for four seasons, and is understood to have negotiated the termination of his Juventus contract in order to reunite with the Spaniard.

    Guardiola’s side are in need of reinforcements at full back after releasing Pablo Zabaleta and Gael Clichy, who joined West Ham and Basaksehir respectively.
    City had previously targeted Kyle Walker as an option at full back but have cooled their interest after Tottenham slapped a £50million price tag on the defender.
    Alves has been enjoying a relaxing summer since his release from Juventus, following a single season spent with the Serie A champions.
    He jetted off for a sun-soaked holiday with Sanz last month, just days after the Juventus’ Champions League final defeat to Real
    Madrid.
    Alves was then among the footballing guests who attended Barcelona star Lionel Messi’s wedding in Rosario, Argentina last week.
    The Brazilian won the Italian league title with Juventus this season, he previously collected six La Liga titles during his eight-year spell at Barcelona, in addition to winning the Champions League three times.

  • Dani Alves drops massive Ethihad transfer hint

    Dani Alves drops massive Ethihad transfer hint

     

    Juventus defender Dani Alves dropped a massive hint that he is set to join Manchester City by praising manager Pep Guardiola.

    Alves worked with Guardiola during the City boss’ highly successful four seasons in charge of Barcelona, winning the Champions League twice in that span.

    Reports suggest he has agreed a two-year deal to move to the Premier League side once he has negotiated his exit from Juve and he did little to dampen that speculation when providing an update on his future.

    “Everyone knows my admiration for Pep Guardiola – he is a great coach,” Alves told Brazilian TV show Conversa com Bial when asked if City would be his next team.

    Alves also discussed his situation at Juventus after club CEO Giuseppe Marotta suggested he would be allowed to leave on a free transfer despite still having a year left on his contract.

    The Brazilian continued: “I don’t know what is happening. I have left the work to my agents in Italy and they have said they would talk to me once they find a resolution on the contract.

    “If I go, it will be without any conflicts, without any problems, as opposed to what is being said.”

    If confirmed, City’s swoop for Alves will add to the signings of Bernardo Silva and Ederson.

    Guardiola was keen to add another right-back to his squad following the exits of out-of-contract duo Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta.

    Alves has only spent one year at Juventus, winning Serie A and the Coppa Italia, while the club lost out to Real Madrid in the Champions League final this month.

  • Juventus to release Alves from contract

    Juventus to release Alves from contract

    Italian giants Juventus confirmed on Thursday they would release right-back Dani Alves from the final year of his contract.

    Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is known to be interested in the 34-year-old, whom he knows from their time together at FC Barcelona.

    Juventus chief executive Beppe Marotta said Alves had “expressed a desire to try a new experience’’.

    Marotta said Juventus hoped to reach a “mutual termination’’ with Alves.

    He wished the Brazilian good luck for the future.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Alves has only been with Juve for a year, winning Serie A and reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

    Prior to that, he had spent eight seasons at FC Barcelona.

    The first four of those were under Guardiola, a period when the pair shared in two Champions League triumphs and won La Liga on three occasions.

    Manchester City do not have an experienced right-back after releasing out-of-contract duo Pablo Zabaleta and Bacary Sagna.

    Guardiola has been linked with Tottenham’s Kyle Walker as well as Alves, who he bought for FC Barcelona from Sevilla for £23m in 2008.

  • Dani Alves branded ‘an idiot’ by Diego Maradona over ‘Hand of God’

    Dani Alves branded ‘an idiot’ by Diego Maradona over ‘Hand of God’

     

    Diego Maradona has called Juventus right back Dani Alves ‘an idiot’ after he criticised the Argentina legend for his infamous Hand of God goal.

    Alves said Maradona – who deliberately punched the ball past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton in the 1986 World Cup quarter final – should not be regarded as a role model for young footballers.

    However Maradona hit back, saying Alves was a poor example of a right back – and that players in his position know little about the game anyway.

    Maradona told TyC Sports: ‘Dani Alves is an idiot. He makes 28 passes and only gets four right. As a right-back, Cafu and Maicon were good. Dani Alves? Poor thing.

    ‘He speaks because he plays in a position on the pitch where football is not played. They touch the ball three times and make eight fouls per game.’

    Maradona is generally regarded as one of the greatest footballers to play the game, and scored a brilliant goal soon after the Hand of God, dribbling past five England players as Argentina won on their way to lifting the World Cup.

    Alves however said he would be ashamed if he had won a cup after cheating, and compared Maradona unfavourably to a current Argentina superstar, Lionel Messi.

    He told Esporte Interativo: ‘You want to compare Messi to Maradona? You can’t compare them.

    ‘I would not be proud to say that I won a World Cup with a “Hand of God.” I wouldn’t be able to tell my son that I won a World Cup like this with the whole world talking about it. A sportsman like this can’t be an example for youngsters.’

    Alves has been in the headlines lately amid speculation he is set to leave Juventus, with Chelsea and Manchester City among those interested.

  • Juventus 2-1 Monaco: Italians reach Champions League final

    Juventus 2-1 Monaco: Italians reach Champions League final

    Dani Alves and Mario Mandzukic sent Juventus into the Champions League final as the Italian giants eased by Monaco in a 90 minutes that seemed all too comfortable.

    The Brazilian full-back was the real star, with a stunning volley and an assist as well.

    Monaco was dangerous through the opening 20 minutes, and forced the Juventus defenders to make a few last-ditch clearances and tackles. Georgio Chiellini in particular was needed as he cleared it off the line after a shot got past Gianluigi Buffon.

    Juventus would eventually gain control of the match past the 20-minute mark. Gonzalo Higuain had a big chance one-on-one with Danijel Subasic, but while his chip got past the Monaco goalkeeper, Kamil Glick was there to clear it off the line. Subasic then made a spectacular save on Mandzukic who got through.

    [ MORE: FIFA to investigate Paul Pogba transfer ]

    Mandzukic would make amends just past the half-hour mark to put the two-legged tie away. The ball switched flanks from left to right, and eventually fell to Dani Alves. The Brazilian, who had both assists in the first leg, delivered yet another glittering cross to Mandzukic making a far-post run, and while the striker’s header was saved by Subasic, he roofed the rebound from point-blank range for the opening goal.

    Moments later, Alves nearly had yet another assist, but his beautiful through ball to spring Higuain saw the referee’s flag correctly raised for offside.

    Monaco, however, didn’t give in. Minutes before the halftime break, a superb cross from Benjamin Mendy nearly met the outstretched leg of Falcao, but Chiellini made a stunning tackle to turn the cross behind for a corner on a slide that would see most defenders end up with the ball in their own net.

    The missed chance would loom large as Juventus end up down the other end with a second goal to well and truly put the match away. Paulo Dybala had a one-on-one chance saved well by Subasic, but on the ensuing corner, the goalkeeper’s punch fell to Alves who delivered a cracking one-time volley before the ball fell to ground that rippled the back of the net.

    After the break, Monaco would eventually pull one back with 20 minutes to go as Kylian Mbappe’s close-range poke was the first goal conceded by Juventus in 689 Champions League minutes.

    Things got physical as Glick stamped on an infuriated Higuain, while Mandzukic was the recipient of an elbow from substitute Fabinho.

    Monaco had little else to offer as Juventus time-wasted expertly and the French club couldn’t stop fouling. The win for Juventus moves them into their ninth European final and their second in the last three seasons. Meanwhile, Monaco’s fabulous run comes to an end, stunted by the incredible Juventus defense and let down by their own porous back line.

  • Dani Alves: Barca too ungrateful for my liking

    Dani Alves: Barca too ungrateful for my liking

     

     

     

    Dani Alves has slammed his former side Barcelona for their ‘false and ungrateful’ attitude towards him, claiming it was the reason why he ultimately decided to depart for Juventus.

    The Brazilian was able to bring an eight-year spell at the Nou Camp to an end last summer after activating a peculiar termination clause in his contract.

    Months of speculation meant it came as little surprise to the press but, considering their troubles at right-back this season, Barcelona were evidently not prepared.

    Alves, 33, says the La Liga champions only have themselves to blame with regards to his exit, claiming the hierarchy has ‘no idea’ how to treat their players properly.

    The defender told ABC: ‘During my last three seasons I always heard that “Alves was leaving”, but the managers never said anything to me. They were very false and ungrateful. They did not respect me.

    ‘I was only offered to renew when the FIFA transfer ban came in. That was when I went and signed a deal with a termination clause. Those who run Barcelona today have no idea how to treat their players.’

    One person who would have been glad to see Alves pack his bags and leave the Spanish top flight was Cristiano Ronaldo. The pair had been involved in a bitter feud for several seasons with Alves regularly taunting the Real Madrid star via the

    media.

    But Alves claims his apparent disregard for Ronaldo was invented by the press and says that he actually has a tremendous amount of respect for the four-time Ballon d’Or winner.

    ‘If people only knew how much I respect Cristiano Ronaldo. I will repeat it to make myself clear: I respect Cristiano  Ronaldo.

    ‘When I spoke about him being too selfish, when you win you are going to be the star but when you lose they will go for you, so I said it in a very respectful way.

  • Alves completes Juventus move

    Alves completes Juventus move

    Brazilian defender, Dani Alves, has completed his move from Barcelona to Juventus after signing a two-year contract with the Serie A champions.

    Alves left Camp Nou on a free transfer after giving the Catalan outfit eight- year service following a €30 million move from Sevilla in 2008, Goal reports.

    In a statement released on Monday evening, the player wrote: “I am a privileged and honoured footballer, for whom life has allowed him to wear the shirt of the best club in the world in an incredible decade for the quality of its players and coaches.”

    And, after arriving in Turin for his medical, the Brazil international sealed the transfer by committing to a contract until June 30, 2018, with the option of another year.

  • Barca maul Atletico 2-1

    Barca maul Atletico 2-1

    La Liga Giants, Barcelona FC, on Tuesday thrashed bitter rivals Atletico Madrid 2-1 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

     

    Atletico Madrid took the lead in the 25th minutes of first half, courtesy of Fernando Torres following an assist from Koke

     

    Torres was sent off on the 35th minutes of the game following a second booking but the 10-men of Diego Simeone could not hold for too long as the pressure gets tougher.

     

    Hence,  Barcelona took advantage of Atletico Madrid’s 10-men with an opener from Luis Suarez in the 63rd minute.

     

    Suarez later converted a cross from Dani Alves on the 74th minutes of the game as Barca dominated and took control of the match in the second half.

     

    The second leg is set to take place next week Wednesday.

     

  • Barcelona should offer Dani Alves new contract, says Abidal

    Former Barcelona defender Eric Abidal says the Catalan club should ensure that right-back Dani Alves does not leave the Camp Nou in the summer on a free transfer.

    Alves, 31, is out of contract in June and has yet to be offered an extension, despite Barca being unable to make any further signings until January 2016 due to a transfer ban.

    Speaking before Sunday’s 3-2 La Liga victory over Villarreal, the Brazil international’s agent Dinorah Santana suggested her client could move on, while afterwards, Blaugrana president Josep Maria Bartomeu said it was too early yet to start talking about contract issues for next season.

    Abidal, who after retiring as a player last year is thought to be close to returning to the Camp Nou in a backroom role, told Barcelona TV show La Porteria that both Alves and the club should come together and agree on a new deal.

    Even though he is expected to depart at season’s end, the right back spot at Barcelona still belongs to Dani Alves. Dani Alves is out of contract with Barcelona in the summer.

    “Alves is the best right-back in the world, and Barca must take advantage of this,” Abidal said. “If I speak with him, I will tell him to renew his contract.”

    Ahead of any talks, Alves’ camp looks to be in a strong negotiating position, given the transfer ban and coach Luis Enrique appearing not to have huge faith in other right-back options Martin Montoya and Douglas.

    Alves was heavily linked with Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain last summer, while Premier League clubs Liverpool and Manchester City have previously been credited with an interest in the player.

  • Dani Alves: I want to stay at Barcelona

    Barcelona star Dani Alves has confirmed his desire to stay at the club and see out his contract amid speculation linking him with a move elsewhere.

    The 31-year-old is determined to bring “enjoyment” back to the Blaugrana and put a difficult 2013-14 season, in which they finished runners-up in both the league and Copa del Rey, behind them.

    Alves, who signed for Barcelona in 2008, has always been a first-team regular and will be looking to add to the four Primera Division trophies, two Copas del Rey and two Champions League titles that he has won since joining the club.

    “I want to fulfil the contract I signed. I am very happy at the club,” he told Marca. “I’ve had some wonderful years here – recently not so much but I want to help bring enjoyment back to this club.

    “When I return to Barcelona I will speak with the people at the club and see what they want. If they want me to go I will look for an exit. If they want me to stay, I will continue.

    “I have a contract with Barca and I have always given everything for the club, regardless of the results of the last [few] years. I want to stay but it does not just depend on me.”