Brazil full-back Dani Alves believes Juventus made the wrong choice when they signed him in 2016: ‘I had never kicked a long ball in my life.’ The veteran famously made the move to Turin on a free transfer but lasted only one season before requesting to leave the club. Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Alves discussed how the role of the full-back has changed before recounting his time with the Bianconeri:
“People don’t know what they’re saying. It always depends on the team you play in. If you put an extremely defensive player in Barcelona it doesn’t make sense, and similarly an attacking full-back in a team that prefers defence is not in the right place.
An example: me at Juve. That Juve was a team that structurally was made to defend. I was pushing but it ended up conflicting with the idea of the team, so I didn’t play as much as I would have liked. You have to choose the right player for the team’s needs.
Is that why I left? Yes. They signed a player with beastly offensive potential, but they didn’t need a guy like that. I had never kicked long in my life, I certainly couldn’t start at 33. They made the wrong choice.
Danilo? He’s the player I get on best with, despite playing in the same position as me. We get on well because when we’re together we chase away boredom. He’s a person of great intelligence, who loves football.
He’s the only one I can talk to about other things, the conversation with him is advanced, evolved. On the pitch we are different, but since football is not played in only one way everyone can be useful.
I’m a fan of Joao Cancelo, then James from Chelsea and Alexander-Arnold, someone who, to return to the subject of everyone’s characteristics, with a 50-metre pass jumps two lines of pressure. And then Dani Alves, he looks very strong to me!
Brazil are always the favourites, because of tradition and history. Things that count in these tournaments. We have suffered in recent years but now we have built a squad with a very thick skin, for human qualities of the people this is the best locker room in Brazil for a long time.
Mbappé and Neymay? A great player must always know and understand who he has next to him, teammates enhance your qualities. Mbappé is a phenomenon, but he still hasn’t understood that those who play with him in attack are more phenomenal than him.
Neymar and Messi are unique, they see and do things that no one else sees or can do. You have to be clever to take advantage of their potential, they are the two football geniuses.
I think I can touch the ball well, but when I played with Leo I gave the ball to him, and if I play with Ney, I give the ball to him. If Mbappé gives the ball to those two he scores 150 goals.”
