FC Barcelona 2010/11 Season in Review: Daniel Alves

Report: Daniel Alves enjoyed another highly successful season, a season that reaffirmed him as one of, if not the best right back in the world. Dani was a rare constant in the often injured Barcelona backline. Furthermore he performed remarkably well in almost all of them. Yes, he did take an occasional game off (Hércules on 14 September 2010), but save for two or three games he was simply brilliant.

Despite being known for his attacking qualities, Alves also had a very good season on defense. He was very responsible while defending not making many stupid fouls in the danger area. However, he still makes too many late tackles and sometimes his Brazilian temperament gets the best of him.

One more knock on Alves' game has to be his Academy Award worthy diving technique. The most talked about case was the "incident" involving Real Madrid's Pepe, but there were more incidents. Dani has too much talent to be flapping on the ground after every little contact.

Alves has been an offensive force ever since he joined Barcelona three years ago. But this season he brought his attacking side of the game to another level as he finished the Spanish season with 15 assists. Good enough for third place in the league and miles ahead of the next defender (Andoni Iraola at 7). Even when he didn't pick up a helper he was constantly featured in the build-up to the eventual goal.

Moment of the season: So, how can you pick a moment of the season for a man that played 54 games, scored four goals and assisted on 20 of them while playing good defense? Well let me tell you, it's not easy. The helpful factor in Dani's case was that he scored one of the most beautiful goals of the 2010/11 season. In the game against Getafe CF on 19 March 2011 Alves broke the deadlock with a stunning 20 yard half-volley. Barca went on to win the game by the score of 2-1.

Dani Alves nice goal!!! | FC Barcelona 1-0 Getafe | 19/3/2011 (via footballfantomas)

Stats:

Record with Daniel Alves in the starting lineup: 37-10-3

2011/12 Outlook: Dani Alves is used to a heavy workload and next season shouldn't be any different. With no clear backup at right back Alves will once more play the vast majority of Barcelona's games. He will continue to play more in the offensive zone than on defense, but as long as he plays the way he has been nobody should have any objections. For some time during this season it looked like the 2011/12 season will be Alves' last in a Blaugrana shirt, but the contract extension he signed in March will make every Culé breath a lot easier.

Next up: Carles Puyol

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