Dani Alves can be the perfect solution to Leicester’s right-back woes
According to the Telegraph, Brazilian right-back Dani Alves is still determined to make it to the Premier League one way or another. The 35-year-old has won a lot of laurels with the European giants Juventus, Barcelona, Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain and wants to try his luck in the Premier League.
The Brazilian veteran was one of the stars for PSG last season, featuring regularly in Ligue 1 and also played an important role in the Champions League. However, he missed the World Cup in Russia due to a detached anterior cruciate ligament and is yet to take the field this season.
Alves was in terrific form for the French giants last season, registering a goal and seven assists in the Ligue 1 in addition to the couple of goals that he scored in the Champions League.
The hugely experienced Brazilian ace is a proven player at all levels and has all the attributes to taste success in the Premier League. Even at the age of 35, he is as fit as a fiddle and has hardly shown any signs of losing his mojo. In other words, he has been one of the best offensive-minded right-backs in the world for a long time.
The 35-year-old averaged 3.2 tackles and 1.1 interceptions last term in the Ligue 1 and showed a lot of tenacity to drive forward and support the attack with powerful overlapping runs. In fact, Alves averaged 1.1 shots, 1.9 key passes, 1.1 dribbles and 1.2 crosses per game, statistics which are bound to make even a winger proud.
To put things into perspective, Leicester City should capitalise on this opportunity and table a bid to land the Brazilian maestro in January. The Foxes have been rather inconsistent this season and Claude Puel’s men sit 10th in the Premier League with 17 points from 12 games. Quite clearly, the Foxes need to raise their game if they are to compete with the likes of Watford and Bournemouth for a spot in Europe next season.
Leicester have had a torrid time at the back this season and lack of stability in defence has been a major cause of their undoing in the Premier League. Wes Morgan has looked way off the pace and has already been sent off twice while Jonny Evans and Harry Maguire haven’t quite hit top gear.
However, the main problem for the Foxes lies in the right-back area. Ricardo Pereira, who was signed by the Foxes in the summer as an upgrade to the 31-year-old Danny Simpson, has failed miserably in terms of defence, forcing Puel to deploy him as a right-winger instead. Daniel Amartey has tried his level best to fill in the shoes of a right-back but his limitations have been exposed against quality opposition.
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Suffice to say, Leicester need a quality right-back who can contribute equally to both attack and defence and Dani Alves would be the perfect option for that purpose.
The wily old Brazilian still has plenty of fuel left in his tank and the Foxes should not hesitate to table a bid to land him in January. As experienced as he is, Alves can propel them to a European spot next season.
