Dani Alves completes free move to his next club

The Brazilian legend left Barcelona after his contract ended earlier this summer.

Dani Alves has completed a free move to Liga MX side Pumas Unam.

The top-flight Mexican team has signed Alves as a free agent following the 39-year-old’s departure from Barcelona earlier this summer.

Alves re-joined Barcelona for a second spell with the Spanish side last winter. His performances convinced many observers that Barca might give him a new contract ahead of the next campaign.

However, the Catalans preferred to release Alves as a free agent, which left the Brazilian full-back frustrated.

“I didn’t leave sad, I left happy to have returned to Barcelona,” Alves said.

“I dreamed for five years wanting to live this second moment. The only thing I didn’t like was how my departure was handled.

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“Since I arrived, I made it very clear that I wasn’t any more a 20-year-old guy and that I wanted things to be done head-on, without hiding things. But this club has sinned in recent years. Barcelona don’t care about the people who made history for the club.

“As a cule, I would like Barcelona to do things differently. I’m not talking about myself because my situation was another scenario. I am eternally grateful to Xavi and the president for bringing me back.

“I found a club full of young people with incredible ideas on the pitch. But it needs to improve the work outside the field. The mindset is totally opposite to what we built a few years ago. Everything that happens on the field is a reflection of what happens outside.

“I’m supporting for Barcelona to come back to the top, but it’s difficult. Football is more balanced, it’s a collective game. And that has been absent at the club.”

Pumas Unam currently sit eighth in Liga MX. Alves can make his debut for the Mexican side when they face Pachuca on Monday.