Dani Alves has accused Barcelona of “not caring” about those who made history for the club as he criticised the manner of his exit this summer.
Barca did not extend the short-term contract of Alves even though the veteran right-back was hoping to stay at the club for at least the first half of next season to keep his World Cup dream alive, meaning that he is now a free agent and on the lookout for a new club.
The Brazilian right-back became the first signing of Blaugrana boss Xavi Hernandez at the Camp Nou, arriving on a free transfer in January after his contract was cancelled at Sao Paulo last September. He made 17 appearances in the second half of the campaign for Barca, but his short-term deal was not renewed.
Alves returned to Barca after five-and-a-half years away from the club; but he was unable to replicate the success of his first Camp Nou stint this campaign as Xavi’s side finished the season empty-handed despite an upturn in results from the opening months of the season.
Speaking to The Guardian, Alves clarified that he “did not leave sad” over his exit from the Camp Nou this summer and added: “I left happy to have returned to Barcelona. I dreamed for five years wanting to live this second moment. The only thing I didn’t like was how my departure was handled.”
The Brazilian continued: “Since I arrived, I made it very clear that I wasn’t any more a 20-year-old guy and that I wanted things to be done head-on, without hiding things. But this club has sinned in recent years. Barcelona don’t care about the people who made history for the club. As a Barca fan, I would like Barcelona to do things differently. I’m not talking about myself because my situation was another scenario. I am eternally grateful to Xavi and the president for bringing me back.
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Alves said: “I found a club full of young people with incredible ideas on the pitch. But it needs to improve the work outside the field. The mindset is totally opposite to what we built a few years ago. Everything that happens on the field is a reflection of what happens outside.
“I’m supporting for Barcelona to come back to the top, but it’s super-complicated. Football is more balanced, it’s a collective game. And that has been left out at the club.”
Mexican club Pumas have been linked with a move for Alves this summer after rumours emerged that Ronaldo Nazario wanted to sign him at Real Valladolid – with a sensational plan to land both Alves and Marcelo, who exited Real Madrid this summer. The future of Alves remains up in the air as he aims to find a new club that will provide him with regular first-team football ahead of the World Cup in Qatar getting underway in November.
