Dani Alves shares Barcelona dilemma: Seeing friends sad 'hurts a lot'
After Juventus eliminated Barcelona from the Champions League on Wednesday, the overwhelming feeling for Dani Alves was one of sadness.
He consoled a sobbing Neymar and told his former teammate to "move on," according to ESPN FC - just as Alves had done himself in the summer when his relationship with Barcelona turned sour.
Juventus held Barcelona scoreless over two legs, the third time that has ever been done to the Catalans in the Champions League.
Neymar spurned several chances, and as Juventus celebrated a 0-0 draw at Camp Nou, it was Alves who stopped and showed compassion.
"The only thing I told him was not to regard this as a defeat, but as a learning experience, to get up from this type of situation and move on," said the Brazilian. "To see my friends sad hurts a lot. When there are feelings involved, it's very difficult, but this profession is like that, and I need to leave feelings out, to do my work, and defend these colours with honour.
"If it happened the other way, they would be sad for me."
Alves spent eight trophy-laden years at Barcelona before opting out of his contract in the summer. Prior to kickoff, he said the "ego of certain people" contributed to his departure.
HEADLINES
- 3 things PSG must change to avoid another Champions League failure
- Bundesliga beats out EPL to seal extra Champions League spot
- France's Lucas Hernandez set to miss Euro 2024 after rupturing ACL
- 'Big stage' Sancho back to scintillating best after tearing PSG apart
- How Bayern rattled Madrid, and what each team can do to reach UCL final