Speaking in the latest copy of FourFourTwo Magazine (May 2022, page 68), Dani Alves has been chatting about his potential move to Manchester City that fell through in 2017.
That summer, Manchester City were in the market for a new right-back after the departure of Pablo Zabaleta, while Bacary Sagna’s career was winding down.
Dani Alves was on the market after his departure from Juventus, and while he was close to joining City, he opted to go to PSG.
Alves has now expressed a bit of regret about not going to City, stating that it was a shame that he wasn’t able to reunite with Pep Guardiola.
What’s been said?
Alves spoke about not joining City that summer.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a frustration for me, as I was happy at every club I played for. I don’t regret anything I’ve done in my career, but it would have been great to rejoin Guardiola. Being his player means you have a football masterclass on a daily basis, so it’s always a shame when you’re not working with him,” Alves said.
“I was really close to signing for Manchester City, but it didn’t happen and it wasn’t my fault. We had an agreement, but they didn’t send me the contract. I was ready to sign it, but they didn’t send it and PSG came into the story – that’s the market. I apologised to Guardiola, as it would have been a dream to play for him again.”
Would’ve been nice
Alves may not have been a key player for City for that long – after all, Kyle Walker joined the club the next year, but it would have been great to have seen the Brazilian in the Premier League.
The right-back is a three-time Champions League winner and he’s arguably the greatest full-back in footballing history, so he would have been a real joy to watch in the Premier League – especially under Pep Guardiola.
Unfortunately, we will never get to see Alves strut his stuff in the English top-flight.
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