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Like David Alaba, Jerome Boateng, and Rafinha before him, Dante has signed a contract extension, fortifying Bayern Munich's back line for the next three years.
The deal the 30-year-old put pen to paper on Monday afternoon runs now until June 2017. The actual increase may just be one year, but it ensures that the Brazilian will stay in red for most of the rest of his prime footballing years.
“Joining Bayern was the best decision of my life,” said Dante in a statement on fcbayern.de/en, “everything here is good: the club, the team, the trophies we win, the atmosphere. Bayern is the right club for me and that’s why I’m delighted to be staying in Munich until at least 2017. I’m certain this team can enjoy a lot more fun and success in the years to come."
Bayern elected to pilfer Dante from Borussia Mönchengladbach following the 2011/12 season, a transaction that only came at a €4.7 million price tag. He has suited up 82 times for Bayern in all competitions since.
“Signing Dante was definitely one of our best transfers of recent years,” Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said in the presser. “In just a year and a half he has emerged as one of our most important players both on and off the field. In the time Dante has been in the team we’ve won five domestic and international trophies. On top of that he is set to fulfil the dream of every Brazilian footballer this summer by playing at the World Cup in his home country. We’re delighted Dante has decided to make FC Bayern Munich his home until 2017.“
The inevitable transfer winds have swirled Dante's way a few times, with Manchester City and Real Madrid allegedly keen on the defender in January. Manchester United was flapping its wings as well, with their two primary defenders well into their 30s, but Monday's extension sucks the wind out of a migration prospect entirely.
Dante not only has his sights on Bayern's second consecutive treble, but the World Cup in his native country as well. He got called into the national team for the first time ever in as a member of the Rekordmeister, and now is a crucial piece of the Seleçao depth in central defense.
The fact that Bayern's entire 51 match unbeaten streak in the Bundesliga has come as part of Dante's tenure is no coincidence, and now the record marks Bayern can achieve could no longer becoming fantasy over the next three years.