Dani Alves feels that Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez didn’t fit into the system at Barcelona, though admits the Chilean remains a ‘great player’ after his move to North London.
Sanchez spent three years at Barcelona, and scored 38 goals in 88 games for the Catalan giants. He then moved to Arsenal for a reported fee of £35m, once Barcelona signed Luis Suarez from Liverpool.
Alves, who will meet Sanchez in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday, said it requires more than pure talent to shine at the Camp Nou.
“Alexis didn’t fail at Barcelona but it’s hard to play here because you have to understand the playing idea,” Alves told the Daily Mail.
“He’s a great player and I always knew that he would be a success when he left, especially if he went somewhere he would be the protagonist. He’s the kind of player who needs that.
“In the end, you are going to have the protagonism anyway but you have to understand that, at Barcelona, it’s not enough just to be a great player.
“You need to have a great understanding of the way Barcelona play and, if you do, then you will have a long career here.
“Those that come and go, that doesn’t mean they are bad players. They go somewhere else and they enjoy it because they are beasts, but at Barcelona it’s not enough just to be a beast of a player.”
Alves enjoyed a stellar career with the Catalan giants but says that he would love to play in the Premier League, before the end of his career.
The 32-year-old Brazilian has a contract at Barcelona till 2017, with an option of a further year, but hasn’t ruled out a move to England completely.
However, he doesn’t expect to play under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City next season. When asked about the possibility of rejoining his former manager, he laughed at such suggestions, saying the Spaniard would not take him back.
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