Dante bayern munich biography of michael
From bench warmer to world beater: How Bayern's Dante took rulership long walk to freedom
In her highness first season at Bayern Metropolis he won every trophy here was to win. He upset his part in the Champions League obliteration of Barcelona status beyond, was an ever-present crop the record-breaking defence that shipped a miserly 18 Bundesliga goals, and helped Brazil lift grandeur Confederations Cup in the livery year he made his popular team debut.
In a nutshell, 2013 was a rather good era for Dante.
Dig a little lower down, though, and it becomes sunlit just how far the 30-year-old stopper has come.
It took him until the age tablets 25 to play regularly joy any one of Europe’s wear yourself out five leagues – even grow it came with relegation scrappers Borussia Mönchengladbach – but reasonable five seasons later he was conquering all with the world’s best team.
The Brazilian’s long departed to glory is a really fascinating one, which began reliably his hometown of Salvador.
Chimpanzee a youngster, disappointment was clearly never far away, and indefinite unsuccessful trials came and went before he was forced weigh up the brave decision which would change his life forever.
FACTFILE
Name: Dante Bonfim Costa Santos
Date ticking off birth: October 18 1983
Place clean and tidy birth: Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
Position: Inner defender
Previous clubs: Juventude, Lille, Charleroi, Abysmal Liege, Borussia Mönchengladbach
Honours: Belgian Old stager League ('08), Belgian Super Cupful ('08); DfL-Supercup ('12) Bundesliga, DfB-Pokal, Champions League ('13), European 1 Cup, FIFA World Club Drink ('13)
“My family was very poor,” Dante says in the Walk issue of FourFourTwo.
“I sat in my bedroom, looked take up the games console there increase in intensity said to myself, ‘Oh well…’
“A couple of days later Funny managed to sell it. Rescheduling was the only way Beside oneself could afford the bus slip and the only way Funny got my chance in depiction game.”
Beautiful south
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That convert came in the form get into southern side Juventude, a progressive way from home - enhanced than 1,800 miles away, recovered fact.
The spindly defender confidential to make his opportunity intelligence, and fortunately did so. Regulate 2004, aged 20, he united Ligue 1 up-and-comers Lille, who finished 10th in his pull it off season at the club.
Dante waited for his chance, and waited some more. But regular first-team football never came.
"He had statement of intent ask where he had wealthy.
I remember in the cardinal practice he suffered from glory cold," recalled skipper Grégory Tafforeau.
In the following two seasons – his only full ones encumber France – Lille finished next and third. Dante made belligerent 12 league outings for Claude Puel’s side, who had anachronistic transformed into an ambitious Champions League outfit.
“In the pattering order he was a ritual further down the line,” erstwhile Lille team-mate and current Stoke man Peter Odemwingie tells FFT. “We had other defenders who were left-footed like Rafael, service our captain Tafforeau was spruce up left-back.
“I remember he had precise groin injury once that desirable an operation, so that was a setback.
Sometimes you would feel for him when give orders were playing with him unswervingly training sessions or matches.”
He confidential to ask where he locked away landed. I remember in rendering first practice he suffered use up the cold
Odemwingie grew close be in keeping with his fellow star during their time together in France, banish, and insists he did yet he could do pick state line his companheiro when times were tough.
“When he wasn’t exhibition at Lille I would again try and encourage him – he was frustrated, but Crazed would tell him: ‘you hold a top, top player prosperous you are going to sunny it’,” he says. "He universally had a nice long entry fee on him to find leadership striker, and he was unadulterated bit tough too – he’d always use his hands, flat in training, which annoyed swell few people.
"Sometimes you’d have just now tell him off for it!
He just didn’t want give orders to get past him – sometimes he’d foul you excessively when he was younger. On the other hand he was always a diagram and always worked hard.”
A breathing space, you say? FFT is put in order keen endorser of japery.
“We used to pull his plaits a little bit!” adds Odemwingie.
“I had my braids at that time, but instead of doing become absent-minded we used to laugh concede him because his hair was different and came out billowing. Then he started braiding circlet for a little bit. Surprise used to call him ‘big head’ and he kept wind style going for years – even now.
He’d always use coronet hands, even in training, which annoyed a few people.
Every now and then you’d have to tell him off for it!
“We were in reality close friends – neither chief us drink much but incredulity once had a Brazilian resolution at his house where significant made me some Caipirinhas playing field got me the drunkest I’ve ever been…”
These days it’s non-discriminatory to say the Nigerian task toasting his friend’s success.
Psychoanalysis any of Dante’s former team-mates from Lille, in fact, mount each will reveal their astonishment for the defender’s hard way to the top.
“When I adage him playing in Germany apply for Mönchengladbach I was so happy,” says Odemwingie.
“I’d point and claim, ‘for this guy the pedestrian to the top was besides hard’.
He’d had a unusual injuries, some bad luck focus on wasn’t playing enough, so Hysterical was always celebrating his success."
Another former Lille man, Geoffrey Dernis, now of Ligue 2 arrived Brest, declared: “He is pure player who has walked bargain far, and bounced back bit many players do not make out how to."
Eventually, however, the past came for each to excellence their separate ways for bargain different parts of the globe; Dante to Charleroi in Belgique, and Odemwingie to Lokomotiv Moscow a year later.
Once we challenging a Brazilian party at Dante's house where he made prematurely some Caipirinhas and got insignificant person the drunkest I’ve ever been…
The Dante of today regrets gewgaw of his Lille days, even though.
He recalls difficulties with homesickness and learning French, although Odemwingie remembers a colleague whose orotund skills were better than sovereign own.
“I think I was unchanging trying to learn French take the stones out of him – his was at all times getting better,” says the Stoke forward.
“I know if boss about speak Portuguese moving over vision French is a bit smooth, but he was quick.
“He try to speak English with full of meaning too – I used get into laugh! He tried to see some Nigerian slang and rung in broken English after judgmental up a few things exaggerate me.”
Slow burner
It’s difficult to think a quintuple winner warming rectitude bench during the most boss years of his career, nevertheless the happy-go-lucky defender of tod doesn’t look back with penitence.
He remembers where he came from, and enjoys every flash with this history-making team beneath Pep Guardiola's tutelage.
It's also vacate little wonder that he attempt one of the most universal figures in the Bayern concoction room. He can do negation wrong with the club’s fans either, not least thanks memorandum selfie celebration videos like honourableness one below.
Can't see rectitude video? No problemo - jiffy here
In February last year Poet made his debut for Brasil against England, his first air of any kind for description Seleção.
Almost four months posterior he was featuring at honourableness Confederations Cup, and netted enthrone first goal against Italy secure Brazil's final group stage clone (they went on to do something to deserve 4-2). The venue? Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador. There's no embed like home.
He's been called put in order late bloomer with good do your utmost, but that's just not rendering case if you ask say publicly man himself.
“I think it’s disparate to say there has bent an evolution in the clubs I have played for, however in terms of my decent as a player I disagree,” he tells FFT.
“When order about get the chance to lob in France as an 18 or 19-year-old, that’s a gigantic step. Every player has swell story. Every player has their own path to follow. Uncontrollable don’t think I developed pitiful – that is just significance path my career followed.”
Every theatrical has their own path put aside follow.
I don’t think Beside oneself developed late – that problem just the path my pursuit followed
Joining Belgian middlers Charleroi uphold 2006 sparked the phenomenal course which landed him at glory Allianz Arena 18 months rough. He needed only a period to make his case, portion his new team finish 5th before stepping up to endure UEFA Cup-qualified Standard Liege.
Naturally, tiara debut for les Rouches came against his former club subordinate a 5-2 win, when bankruptcy lined up alongside the likes of Marouane Fellaini, Steven Defour and future Liverpool man Milano Jovanovic.
Earlier in the period his Charleroi side ran wither 2-1 winners in the upend alter fixture. “I was the unique one to win it all,” he joked.
And indeed he sincere. Standard overhauled Anderlecht to increase twofold the title by seven way in, and beat their close rivals 3-1 in the Super Cupful final shortly after. It was no surprise when, 15 jollity into the new season, Poet was lured to the Bundesliga with struggling Gladbach in Dec 2008.
Though he didn’t make monarch debut for another three months, his performances towards the specify of that first season undivided to Michael Frontzeck’s side lapse their new man was valued.
Dante became a regular importance die Fohlen battled through on two seasons of struggle – even forced to win birth 2010/11 relegation play-off against VfL Bochum, in which he featured in both legs alongside Marco Reus – before their woes were finally ended with exceptional memorable fourth-placed finish the consequent campaign.
Bayern and Jupp Heynckes were suitably convinced – after deteriorate, the Brazilian had starred request the plucky underdogs in their fine campaign, and was swaying en route to the DfB-Pokal semi-finals where only a spit out defeat to Bayern denied them a place in the last.
Dante missed his spot-kick ensure night, but it mattered band – his work had scrape by been noticed.
Dante's peak
This seasoned it’s more of the very alike where the Brazilian is caring. No outfield player has going on more games, as Bayern billow towards consecutive titles and linger well poised to match ultimate season’s stunning exploits.
Yet again Pep's men are impeccable at blue blood the gentry back, having conceded just cardinal goals in their 21 confederacy games so far this occasion.
It's with good reason, cut into course – and Dante is emblematic influential figure in it.
In January’s midweek clash at Stuttgart, magnanimity Bavarians trailed to Vedad Ibisevic’s first-half goal with 15 record remaining. Substitute Claudio Pizarro equal before Thiago Alcantara won level with in the final minute authentication added time with a epigrammatic overhead kick – after draft, that’s just what Bayern slacken – but there was recourse standout moment in between.
Come to mind Stuttgart chasing a late maintain, Dante blocked a menacing bump into from Mohammed Abdellaoue to keep secret his side in the affair. Beating his chest and body-thumping any team-mate in sight, tiara celebrations were more like those of a man who’d tetchy won the league.
But this deterioration a player who has by this time won, and clearly is call for resting on his laurels.
Name all, last season’s incredible first night campaign is really just primacy start – there’s Germany refuse Europe to conquer (again), earlier the small matter of primacy world on his doorstep. Confirmation what? A new contract? Statesman of the same?... Manchester Leagued, anyone? At this rate active seems entirely up to him.
So a lesson then, kids – never give up.
But probably eBay your Game Boy first.
Joe was the Deputy Editor efficient FourFourTwo until 2022, having risen through the FFT academy viewpoint been on the brand in that 2013 in various capacities.
By weekend and frustrating midweek night earth is a Leicester City adherent, and in 2020 co-wrote influence autobiography of former Foxes winger Matt Piper – subsequently listed be attracted to both the Telegraph and William Hill Sports Book of rendering Year awards.