DANI ALVES SAYS Barcelona enjoyed facing Arsenal in the Champions League during his time at Camp Nou because they “dominated” the Gunners.
Barcelona eliminated the Premier League side from the knockout rounds of the competition twice in a row during Pep Guardiola’s spell in charge before a 5-1 aggregate win over them in the last 16 in 2015-16.
Arsene Wenger’s side did not pick up a win in any of those games as Barca dominated Europe and Spain, and Alves admits they were a side Barcelona thoroughly enjoyed coming up against.
“Well, we definitely liked to face Arsenal,” he told FourFourTwo when asked which English sides they relished being drawn with.
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“They had a similar football style to ours, and this sometimes helped to facilitate our way of playing.
We were drawn against them several times with a positive outcome. They were a team we dominated and had a control over. Every time we faced Arsenal, we’d have a good result or good performance.
With Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Dani Alves playing starring roles, Guardiola’s Barcelona team are hailed as one of the best the global game has ever seen, and the Brazilian admits they were incredible as a unit.
“Talking to several football experts, they haven’t seen another team as incredible as that Barcelona,” the full-back, now at Paris Saint-Germain, explains. “These are people who’ve been following the game for a long time and they say they’ve never seen such a thing.
“We represented the definition of a collective game. We ate, drank and breathed football, so moments like winning the Champions League were rewards for all our efforts.”
Alves won six Spanish league titles and three Champions League crowns during his time at Barca before moving on to Juventus and PSG.
The 34-year-old now plays with former Barcelona team-mate and current Brazil colleague Neymar at Parc des Princes, where the duo have enjoyed a great start to the season under Unai Emery.
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'We definitely liked to face Arsenal. They were a team we dominated and had control over' - Alves
DANI ALVES SAYS Barcelona enjoyed facing Arsenal in the Champions League during his time at Camp Nou because they “dominated” the Gunners.
Barcelona eliminated the Premier League side from the knockout rounds of the competition twice in a row during Pep Guardiola’s spell in charge before a 5-1 aggregate win over them in the last 16 in 2015-16.
Arsene Wenger’s side did not pick up a win in any of those games as Barca dominated Europe and Spain, and Alves admits they were a side Barcelona thoroughly enjoyed coming up against.
“Well, we definitely liked to face Arsenal,” he told FourFourTwo when asked which English sides they relished being drawn with.
“They had a similar football style to ours, and this sometimes helped to facilitate our way of playing.
With Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Dani Alves playing starring roles, Guardiola’s Barcelona team are hailed as one of the best the global game has ever seen, and the Brazilian admits they were incredible as a unit.
“Talking to several football experts, they haven’t seen another team as incredible as that Barcelona,” the full-back, now at Paris Saint-Germain, explains. “These are people who’ve been following the game for a long time and they say they’ve never seen such a thing.
“We represented the definition of a collective game. We ate, drank and breathed football, so moments like winning the Champions League were rewards for all our efforts.”
Alves won six Spanish league titles and three Champions League crowns during his time at Barca before moving on to Juventus and PSG.
The 34-year-old now plays with former Barcelona team-mate and current Brazil colleague Neymar at Parc des Princes, where the duo have enjoyed a great start to the season under Unai Emery.
- Omni
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