Dani Alves

Dani Alves has praised compatriot Philippe Coutinho following Brazil’s 3-0 win over Russia in an international friendly. The Barcelona attacker score his ninth goal for the country in the fixture, and following the game, Alves was full of praise for the attacker, whom he compared to close friend and teammate Neymar.

Speaking after the match, Alves said: “I think that Coutinho is a player who is on the same level as Ney, he has a massive influence on our game and in his teams. When he was in Liverpool and now in Barca, he has improved a lot and learned to read the game better, to make the right decisions.That is great to see, to play with such a good footballer who has that ability. There are others who are similar. We are lucky to play with great players and have them on our side is fantastic. We have to get the best out of them and build a solid team.”

Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has responded to the ongoing speculation linking Neymar with a potential move to arch-rivals Real Madrid in the summer. The Brazil international only joined Paris Saint-Germain from Barca on a world-record deal in August, but talks have intensified over his future amid reports of unrest at the French capital.

Speaking ahead of Spain’s international friendly against Germany, Iniesta was quizzed about the Neymar situation to which he replied: “The truth is that the future of Neymar is not something I'm thinking about. Normally, when you leave a place, it's hard to come back, which is why I would be more surprised if Neymar returned to go to another team, but we'll see. If he signed, Madrid would sign one of the best in the world, but we - Barca - will continue with a template that I can better.”

Paris Saint-Germain defender Dani Alves has insisted that Neymar had to cut his ties with Barcelona in order to enhance his chances of claiming individual honours. The Brazil international is rated as one among the world's best, and Alves believes his compatriot played in the shadows of Lionel Messi at the Camp Nou.

In a report covered by The Mirror, Alves said: "I think Neymar is up there with Lionel as the most influential player in world football. I think you have got a better chance of achieving things individually when you are not so close to a player like him."

Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Javier Pastore has refuted claims that he is considering a potential exit from Parc des Princes this month. The Argentina international has been heavily tipped to leave the Capital outfit this term with Inter Milan leading the hunt for his services.

Les Parisiens skipper Thiago Silva recently hinted that the midfielder could push for a move elsewhere, but the Argentina has now come clear with the gossip stressing that he would love to end his professional career with the Ligue 1 outfit.

Brazil international Dani Alves has revealed that he was on the cusp of joining Liverpool back in the summer of 2006, but the deal fell through at the final hurdle. The Reds had just won the Champions League crown under Rafael Benitez, and Alves was tipped to join them from Sevilla, only for the deal to be called off.

He told FourFourTwo: "I pretty much had an agreement with Liverpool. But for whatever reason, it didn’t happen at the last moment and I really don’t know why, as I wasn’t the one conducting the negotiations. I had other people representing me back then."

Paris Saint-Germain right-back Thomas Meunier has revealed that he knocked back advances from Chelsea despite facing competition from Dani Alves for the right-back spot. The Belgium international had expected competition from a new signing in the summer but was surprised by the club's decision to sign Dani Alves on a free transfer.

Speaking with Eleven Sports, he said, "I was expecting the arrival of a right-back but not that of Dani. I did not know what to think. Was I only going to be a substitute? I could have left for Chelsea on the final day of the summer transfer window but I did not."

Paris Saint-Germain Dani Alves has made a stunning revelation that playing professional football was not his ambition in his early days.

The Brazil international has won 19 major honours in his career including the Champions League and Europa League twice, but he would not have achieved the accolades, had things gone his way.

Speaking in an exclusive with FourFourTwo, Alves admitted that he spent his youth fiddling with musical instruments, and his father was the prime reason behind him switching to football, he said: "Honestly, I would have rather been a musician, but I accepted his idea to be a footballer, I managed to make his dream come true, something I couldn't imagine even in my wildest dreams. I made the dream of my biggest idol, my role model, come true.

Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe has insisted that he wants to mark history with the former French champions following his initial loan move from Monaco on transfer deadline day.

The 18-year-old linked up with Les Parisiens on a season-long long with the obligation for a permanent switch at €180m in the summer of 2018.

In an interview with TF1, Mbappe said that he would like to mark the history in his hometown and Paris Saint-Germain were the perfect to encourage his development, he said: "Big players have marked history in their country whether with the national team or their club. What I want to do is to really mark the history of my city. PSG was really the project that allowed me to carry on my progress while playing."

According to reports, Brazilian fullback DaniAlves dumped Manchester City for Paris St Germain because he thought his superstar compatriot Neymar would move to the French side as well.

Alves was thought to be on his way to the Etihad to reunite with his former Manager Pep Guardiola. The former Barcelona man reportedly verbally agreed to join City but then made a U-turn to Paris.

DaniAlves released a post which confirmed his exit from the Italian club Juventus which read: ¨Today our professional relationship ends and I will carry away with me all those who truly make Juve a great club¨

¨I would like to thank all the Juventus supporters for the year I’ve had, to my team-mates who welcomed me like the professionals they are, for a club that wins and reaches finals¨