Dani Alves to Gianluigi Buffon - The oldest players to sign for top European clubs?

New Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez's first signing after taking charge of the club was a huge surprise as he brought his former teammate Dani Alves to the Catalan giants.

Alves, who was a free agent since the beginning of the ongoing 2021-22 season after he had terminated his contract with Brazilian side Sao Paulo, returned to the La Liga side after a gap of four years.

The Brazilian full-back played alongside Xavi for seven years (2008 to 2015) left Barcelona in 2017. He then joined former Serie A champions Juventus for a season before heading to PSG where he spent the next two seasons of his career.

With 43 trophies to his name at both international and club, the Brazilian is the most decorated footballer of all time. At the age of 38, Alves re-signed for his former club thus becoming the oldest signing in the history of Barcelona.

We take a look at the oldest signings of all the top European clubs. Among all the oldest players, John Burridge, Gianluigi Buffon and Mark Schwarzer are the only three players to have put pen to paper at Manchester City, Juventus and Chelsea respectively after crossing 40.

Who are the oldest players to sign for top European clubs?