Dani Alves Ties Pele Record Following Barcelona Victory in Club World Cup Final

Barcelona full-back Dani Alves has equalled Pele’s Brazilian record for most major honours won, as he helped the Blaugrana to Club World Cup glory on Sunday.

Alves was part of the team that beat River Plate 3-0 thanks to two goals from Luis Suarez and one from Lionel Messi. As noted by Mister Chip, it was a landmark piece of silverware for Alves:

The full-back has been almost an ever-present in what have been many years of dominance from the Catalan giants.

During his time at the Camp Nou, Alves has won five league titles, three Champions League crowns and three Copa del Rey finals. The win over River Plate was the third time the Brazilian has helped his team to the Club World Cup.

YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/Getty Images

Alves actually came close to leaving Barcelona in the summer, but he eventually decided to sign a new deal with the La Liga giants. And while he may not be as dynamic on the right flank as he once was, he’s still a crucial component of Luis Enrique’s team.

As Mister Chip noted, in terms of defenders, few come near Alves when it comes to winning major honours:

Pele, regarded as the greatest player to ever kick a ball by some, won three World Cups with Brazil. At club level, his finest triumphs came with Santos, where he enjoyed Brasileirao league title success six times and Copa Libertadores victory twice.

FABRICE COFFRINI/Getty Images

Drawing alongside Pele in these stakes will not make Alves remembered anywhere near as fondly as his iconic compatriot, but it’s certainly an indicator that the Barcelona man is one of the most underrated players of his generation.

His ability to stretch the play laterally allows space for the likes of Lionel Messi—who has shared a right flank with Alves for much of his career—Luis Suarez and Neymar to operate to great effect. Alves is a player who possesses great quality in the final third, regularly chipping in with assists and the odd goal.

In addition to all his footballing qualities, he is a bit of a joker and someone who seems a hugely popular figure within the Barcelona dressing room too, per his Instagram account:

There’s still more to come from the Brazilian. He’s only 32 years old, and given the way in which Barcelona play now, where there is less emphasis on the full-backs to push on quite so high, Alves won’t have to put himself through quite as much physical duress as in previous years.

We should still expect to see him scorching down the right flank on occasions and making critical contributions to Barcelona victories, though. Enrique will want to have someone of his experience, popularity and with evident winning mentality around the squad for a long while yet.