In a poll run by UOL Esporte (Big Brazilian sports channel), 86% of respondents said they would not want Alves playing for their club. On their podcast Posse de Bola, veteran sports writer Juca Kfouri agreed with them: “God help me. He’s a guy who thinks he’s more important than the club, who thought he was more important than Sao Paulo… I think he would be an element of contamination in my team.”
'Alves was spotted on Instagram having a party as Sao Paulo lost in the Libertadores to River Plate – he was recovering from a fractured arm at the time – and relations between him and fans started to sour. Days later, supporters protested outside the training ground, singing, “Oh, how good it would be if Dani Alves went back to Bahia,” the state where he was born.'
'By leaving in the middle of Sao Paulo's season to pursue his Olympic ambition, he infuriated Sao Paulo supporters. He had claimed to be one of them, in fact he said that he was going to “fight for this club more than any other fan.” Yet there he was in Japan after a dispute over money. In an Instagram post, the club’s biggest torcida organizada, or organised fan group, accused Alves of “abandoning” Sao Paulo and asked for his contract to be rescinded. Just over a month later, that is exactly what happened.'
'The cost is not only financial. The club looks embarrassingly incompetent. On UOL Esporte, columnist Menon wrote: “It was the worst signing in the history of Sao Paulo, certainly. And, I dare say, the worst in world football history'.
Here you can get an idea of how much they love Alves and his personality in Sao Paulo.