RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Veteran right-back Dani Alves has joined Brazilian Serie A side Sao Paulo, less than two months after parting ways with Paris Saint-Germain.
The 36-year-old ended weeks of speculation about his future by signing a three and a half-year deal with the team he supported as a child.
"It's unreal but he is at the club that he loves: Welcome Daniel Alves!," Sao Paulo said in a Twitter post late on Thursday.
The club said that the former Sevilla, Barcelona, Juventus and PSG defender will wear Sao Paulo's No. 10 shirt.
The six-time Brazilian top-flight champions are understood to have beaten off interest in Alves from a host of clubs in Europe, including at least one Premier League side.
"I could've picked any other team to play for," Alves said in a video posted on Sao Paulo's social media accounts. "But I chose to come back to Brazil, to my country, to my people. To the club I love."
In a statement, Sao Paulo president Carlos de Barros said: "Daniel Alves is the embodiment of what this management envisions for Sao Paulo - one of the leading players in the world and recognised for his immense professionalism, his fierce determination and his endless thirst for titles and victories.
"He is also a socially engaged citizen and passionate about our country. Sao Paulo, therefore, wins on every possible front. One day I told Daniel that he would come to play at Sao Paulo, his heart club. Today I have the immense joy and pride to have kept that promise."
Alves is recognized as the most decorated professional footballer in history with 43 trophies over a career spanning two decades. His most recent triumph came last month when he captained Brazil to Copa America glory on home soil.
