Official: Barcelona announce the return of Dani Alves

After what has been a whirlwind of 24 hours with reports and speculations of various kinds doing the rounds, Barcelona have confirmed the signing of former defender Dani Alves. The 38-year-old has signed on with the Catalan giants for the rest of the ongoing season.

Alves spent eight glorious years at Camp Nou, after signing from Sevilla in 2008. One of the first signings of the Pep Guardiola era, the veteran right-back was one of the key protagonists of the success that Barca achieved under the current Man City boss, while he was also an integral member of the team that won the lot under Luis Enrique.

Alves departed Barcelona in 2016, signing for Juventus on a free transfer. He then proceeded to have stints with Paris Saint-Germain and Sao Paulo, whom he left in September earlier this year.

The 38-year-old has been a free agent ever since. Talks of a return to Barcelona started to pick up this week following the appointment of his former teammate Xavi Hernandez as the new manager. And even though there were some reports dismissing those claims, it eventually turned out that the Catalans were indeed working on securing a return for the defender.

Now, the Blaugrana have officially confirmed the arrival of Alves, with a presentation set to be held soon. The club also revealed that while the Brazilian will start training with the first team from next week, he will be eligible to play only after January, when Barca can officially register him in the competitions.

“FC Barcelona and Dani Alves have reached an agreement in principle for the player to join the football first team for the remainder of the current season. The Brazilian will be joining training from next week but will not be able to play until January,” the club’s official statement read.