Dani Alves is Chelsea’s perfect summer signing
As Chelsea continue to be linked with a multitude of big-money stars, Dani Alves may represent one of the best signings that the club can make this summer.
I am on the record saying I don’t think any of the players who underperformed last year should be allowed to leave. That will make the squad size still pretty large and thus with the already pressing need to integrate the youth, Chelsea cannot budge too much in terms of squad additions.
Purely on pride, the players should restore Chelsea FC to the mantle atop the other clubs of London before being allowed to decide their futures. That will also give management a good record from which to work.
“Drop the performances of last season from your minds and let this season be the one by which you are measured” should be the company line. After they have proven themselves if they still choose to jump ship then good riddance to them. Bearing this in mind, Dani Alves may be the most perfect addition.
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Dani Alves will be leaving Barcelona this summer for free after eight seasons and hauling a heavy 23 trophies. Chelsea should offer him a two-year contract. It is not simply because it will be a good capture of a prestige player but it will also allow another example to be set for the young players in the squad.
With John Terry on his way out the door and much of the veteran leadership in the squad departing in recent seasons, it has been obvious that a couple of older heads with proven records are missing from the squad.
Youth integration is the next pressing problem for this Chelsea squad, thus bringing in a veteran leader with some personality to relate to is a good idea. Dani Alves will be easier for a lot of the younger millennial players of different backgrounds to relate to than John Terry or Branislav Ivanovic.
He is an exciting, fun and passionate player who also handled himself with the utmost professionalism throughout his unbelievable career. Essentially this move helps show Chelsea FC’s youth players what it means to be a professional footballer.
At his age, Dani Alves won’t be expecting to play every game and therefore can take on a mentoring role as well. It is also important to note that Conte is a major fan of wing-backs and Dani Alves has been the dominant wing back in Europe for the past decade.
By only starting 20-30 games per season and mentoring players such as Ola Aina, Dani Alves represents value for money. Aina is a RB and RWB in much the same physical mold as Alves and so learning from him as a member of the squad makes the investment worth it.
He would also be useful for the Brazilian contingent. At Chelsea there is a rather sizeable group of young Brazilian players but they don’t have an elder statesman and veteran of the European game like Alves to look up to.
Next: Chelsea FC summer homework: Defenders
As Alves closes in on 100 international caps, hopefully the milestone will be reached while contracted at Stamford Bridge.