Pumas UNAM, the Mexican football club, announced that it had signed veteran Brazilian defender Dani Alves on a free deal a month after the end of his second term with Barcelona.
During his first period with the Catalan club between 2008 and 2016, Alves won the Spanish League title six times and the European Champions League title three times, along with several other prominent titles. “We’ve been waiting for you, Dani Alves,” Pumas said.
Alves helped Brazil win the Olympic gold at the Tokyo Summer Games last year, and with his country, he won the Copa America twice and the Confederations Cup twice.
Alves, 39, has played more than 100 international matches with the Brazilian national team since his first appearance with the team in 2006 and was part of the squad that participated in the World Cup finals in the 2010 and 2014 editions.
Alves joined Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2019 after spending 17 years in Europe, during which he played with Seville, Barcelona, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain, but he terminated his contract with the team last September due to disputes over late financial dues.
He returned to Barcelona in November and signed a contract with him until the end of the 2021-2022 season to join his former colleague Xavi, who was appointed coach of Barcelona.
Alves participated in 14 league matches with Barcelona, who finished second at the end of last season, 13 points behind Real Madrid, who won the title.