Having failed to beat Real Madrid in the Champions League final at Cardiff on Saturday, former Barcelona full-back Dani Alves is all over the news this weekend. According to reports, he is now a target for Premier League runners-up Tottenham Hotspur for a move this summer.
The Spurs have used Kyle Walker on a regular basis at right back for some time now but the English star is now unsettled and could be headed towards the exit door. Kieran Tripper has done a decent job in the last few games but he is far from a player Mauricio Pochettino can use as first choice next season in the Champions League and this has seen him scout for some of the best players in that position in Europe.
The 34-year old Brazil international is easily one of the best, if not the best right-back in Europe at the moment. He helped Barcelona to numerous titles in his long stint at the Camp Nou and the Catalan giants are still struggling to replace him, a whole two years later.
An excellent dribbler with some Brazilian flair, Alves is a toiling footballer who wears his heart on his sleeve. He is a hard worker, who is ever present at both ends of the field for his side. His passing and crossing are up there with the best on show and he is a player who will massively improve any team, even at 34 years of age.
The Spurs are not known for buying world class stars who are well past their prime as footballers but the loss of Kyle Walker will not be easy for Pochettino to replace. For starters, there are hardly any players available in the market, ready to move. If Spurs need a right-back of top quality, they will have to spend big in the transfer market and spending on Alves now will only postpone it.
Losing Walker is a problem they need a quick solution for and the Juventus star is just not the long-term solution. At 34, he may yet be able to play every game of the season, as he has shown in Turin but Spurs need a player who can lay a platform for the future and honestly, Trippier does not look like on who will learn from Alves and turn into a superstar.
The Spurs are in danger of losing some of their best stars and if they intend to replace them with world class players past their prime, Pochettino is taking the club backwards. They need to stick with their recruitment model and the Argentine manager needs to find a young, dependable star, who can own that position for years to come.
