Born in 1983, fullback Dani Alves is the prime example of Brazilian success stories in the European football scene. His move to Sevilla led to six formative years where the Andalusian side enjoyed a successful run, in Europe with two UEFA Cups, and in the Iberian peninsula with the Copa del Rey in 2007.

Despite his eagerness to leave southern Spain resulting in a spat with president del Nido, Alves remained at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan temporarily before heading to eastwards for Spanish giants Barcelona. The record fee of €32.5m was well worth it for the Catalans as the Brazilian’s fast pace and synergy with Lionel Messi made him pivotal in Barca’s offensive philosophy.

With his foot in the mix, the Blaugrana snatched up an impressive treble before continuing their onslaught of trophy triumphs with more Champion’s League, La Liga and Copa del Rey victories. Although Sergi Roberto has been in the spotlight as of recent, Dani Alves da Silva remains not only one of football’s most expensive defensive signings, but also defender with most accolades beating the likes of Paolo Maldini and Cafu.

Here are more sports personalities who will also be making their birthday cake wish:

1953: Graeme Souness, former Rangers, Liverpool and Newcastle United midfielder who now pundits for Sky Sports and beIN Sports (62).

1970: Chris Adams, English right-handed batsman and slip fielder who played for Derbyshire and Sussex (45).

1989: Dominika Cibulkova, Slovakia tennis player who won five WTA, three ITF trophies and reached the final of the Australian Open in 2014 (26).

1994: Mateo Kovacic, Croatian central midfielder who currently plays for Real Madrid (21).