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Talk about a day where transfer rumors dominate our topic of conversation. First we heard reports of Juventus' interest in Barcelona's Javier Mascherano. Now, just mere hours after those Mascherano rumors, one of his longtime Barcelona teammates, Dani Alves, has been heavily linked with a move to Turin as well.
Mascherano, Alves ... Leo Messi? Yeah?
Nah, we won't go there. But I will provide you with the headline that I saw when I clicked onto the front page of the AS English page as I prepared to write up this post.
Alves says 'Adios' to Barcelona
Well, well, well. That's certainly something that would catch your eye knowing how he's been one of Barcelona's big players for the better part of the last decade. And then once you make one more simple click...
Dani Alves to leave Barcelona on a free transfer to Juventus
This isn't just some Spain-driven rumor, either, folks. You can venture over to any of the big Italian sport newspapers or transfer reporters and there's going to be Dani Alves' face right there in the center of everything. Not everybody is mentioning this free transfer part, but Juventus moving for the recently-turned 33-year-old Brazilian is the thing just like a move for Mascherano was a thing at the beginning of the day.
The two main questions I have is pretty simple: How does Alves fit into Juventus' puzzle? And how much does he actually have left in the tank?
Whether Dani Alves viewed as a Juan Cuadrado-like addition to the squad or something different entirely, if this does happen, it's a pretty good sign that Juve are truly prioritizing the Champions League more than in previous transfer windows. Mascherano and Alves have won what seems like hundreds of trophies during their time at Barcelona. And seeing as they would both be short-term additions, European success is what Max Allegri and the rest of the Juventus management so desires.
Plus, we know Beppe Marotta loves himself some free transfers. And if Alves is available for free, you know Beppe had to at least make a phone call to talk things over. That's just how he rolls.