'It was like setting off fireworks': Dani Alves speaks about his on-field connection with Messi

What's the story?

Former Barcelona defender Dani Alves has spoken about his time at the Nou Camp and his undeniable connection with the Catalan giants' star player Lionel Messi.

In case you didn't know...

Messi and Alves played together in a Barcelona side that was one of the greatest football teams of all time under Pep Guardiola.

The duo grew to become one of the most established pairings in football. During Alves's eight-year-stint at the Nou Camp, the duo bagged three Champions League titles, six LaLiga trophies and three Club World Cup titles.

The Brazilian full-back left Barcelona to join Italian giants Juventus in 2016 but only stayed at Turin for a year, before he moved to Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.

The heart of the matter

The 35-year-old defender has now opened up about his time under Guardiola and his on-pitch connection with Argentine ace Lionel Messi.

While promoting a new film about Pep Guardiola's Barcelona , 'Take The Ball, Pass The Ball' in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports, Alves said, "I did all I could to serve him, to make sure he was happy and to make sure he had the ball all the time, which is what he loves most."

"It's like a child when you give him his first present. You give him a football and he plays with it all day. I was in charge of making sure the ball was always at his feet."

"It was very strange because from the time I arrived at Barcelona, from the first day, we had this very, very, very, very weird connection - I mean that in a positive way."

The Brazilian added, "I remember the first game we played together as if it was today. We were doing one-twos all the time, we understood each other with no more than a little look. We knew exactly where the other one was."

"It was surprising for me because I came from Sevilla, from a totally different style of football to Barcelona."

"In that moment, that connection with Leo, it was like setting off fireworks. I said to myself, 'Wow, I'm going to play here for a club which defends what the word football really means '."

What's next?

Barcelona are set to go head-to-head with Real Betis in a LaLiga game on Sunday while PSG are set to face Monaco in Ligue 1 on Monday.