Dani Alves is nervous about his possible first unofficial minutes in the Barcelona shirt, he says in the run-up to the duel with Boca Juniors for the Maradona Cup. Officially, the 38-year-old right-back is only allowed to play for the Catalans from January 1, but he will be part of the 28-man selection of Barcelona on Tuesday for the friendly match in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia.
As a tribute to Diego Maradona, who died last year, Barcelona and Boca Juniors will play for the Maradona Cup on Tuesday. The Argentine football icon enjoyed success with both clubs. There is a good chance that Alves will make his first unofficial minutes in the Barcelona shirt since his return in this game, as he is currently ineligible to play and cannot be signed up to LaLiga until January. The right-back admits to being ‘nervous’ about putting the Barcelona shirt back on after his long absence
“This is the most important challenge of my career because of the difficult situation the club is currently in,” said Alves. “The challenges are for those who are not afraid to face them. We try to do our best in this game as well. It is always special to play wherever or at whatever level it is. I have a very good relationship with many people at Barcelona. This match is about honoring one of the club’s greatest legends and that’s special.”
Barcelona were linked to Napoli during the draw of the intermediate round of the Europa League on Monday. Alves is looking forward to the double encounter with i Partenopei. “I think we have to accept any kind of challenge. We are now playing in the Europa League and whenever we put on the Barcelona shirt we represent the history of the club and we have to win no matter who you face. Even if you play rock, paper or scissors, you have to win if you wear the Barcelona shirt.”
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