Joan Laporta’s first significant move as president was to hire Xavi Hernandez as a coach, but the former Al Sadd boss is now likely to make his own statement signing after approving Barcelona’s pursuit of Dani Alves.
Rumors have been circulating in recent days that the former Sevilla right-back would be open to returning to the Catalan giants, where he had his greatest success, but it would be contingent on Xavi’s will.
The Blaugrana are on a tight budget, so Laporta didn’t want to force players upon his new coach; instead, he wanted to give him the best chance of success by enabling him to make his own judgments. Alves is now one step away from joining Los Cules, with only a financial agreement standing in his way.
Dani Alves is set to return to Barcelona
He will be the first signing of the Xavi era, which is amusing given that he was also one of the first to arrive during Pep Guardiola’s tenure. Xavi sees Sergi Roberto as a midfielder and Oscar Mingueza as a central defender, with both having been obliged to fill in for SerginoDest while the Catalan coach was away.
At 38 years old, it’s evident that Alves won’t be able to play every game, and this is compounded by the fact that he hasn’t played football since canceling his contract with Sao Paulo in September.
The former Brazilian international has played at a top-level all over the world in addition to his trophy-winning experience at Camp Nou. Alves’ stint at Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain was well-received, and his return to South America with Sao Paulo was simply another feather in his cap.
