Dani Alves says advice from long-term teammate Lionel Messi helped him changed his mind and sign a new contract to stay at Barcelona.
Alves' future had been up in the air for many months, with the player claiming to be almost sure of leaving the club more than once over that time, and sides including Milan, Paris Saint Germain, Manchester United and Liverpool all seen as potential destinations.
However, days after playing a key role as Barca sealed the Treble of Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey trophies for the 2014-15 season, the 32-year-old signed a new contract which ties him to the club for two more years, with the option of a third.
The Brazilian told a news conference at the Camp Nou that Blaugrana talisman Messi had told him life at Barcelona was better than life anywhere else.
"Messi said to me 'Dani stay, where are you going to be better than here,'" Alves said. "And for a long time we have said that we live very well at this club. We have the things we need in this city. A year ago, when there were rumours that they wanted to sign Leo and wanted to sell me, we spoke and he said there was nowhere better than here."
Alves said he had actually changed his mind about leaving during the emotional celebrations of Barca's Treble win at the Camp Nou last Sunday.
"I was not liking it here," he said. "I felt a lack of respect because I had done my work. I had the feeling that when things went badly the club blamed me.
"Until the celebration at the Camp Nou, not just for the fans but also my teammates, when I was won over emotionally, I was not going to stay. [Then] I felt I had been wrong, that the fans do love me here, they value me, and these things pushed me to this decision."
The decision of coach Luis Enrique to also sign a new contract and commit to the club was another positive, Alves said.
"He backed me when others doubted," he said. "Last summer he said to me 'Dani, stay this year, we'll enjoy it', and that phrase stuck with me. I like people with character. I see myself reflected in him, above all how he played. He deserves a lot of praise for having made the team great again."
Alves said he had no worries about competing with new €18 million signing Aleix Vidal, when the former Sevilla right-sided player is free to play for Barca next January.
"I love when people come here to compete, and the more difficult it is, the better," he said. "He is a great player and deserves to be here. Either I'll make him better, or he'll make me better, because we're going to battle for the good of the team."
Alves and outgoing president Josep Maria Bartomeu were all smiles as the new deal was signed on Tuesday, and Alves said he had never had anything personally against the now-candidate for the position in late July's elections.
"I do not have a bad relationship with the president, but everyone has to defend their side," he said. "It was a negotiation, and in the end we reached a mid-point, which everyone can like. I like [Bartomeu], although it does not seem so, above all now that I've renewed my contract."
Alves did not go as far as to back Bartomeu in the summer's elections though, saying his camp had previously been in touch with other likely candidates in the presidential poll.
"I did not speak [with other candidates], but my office did because they all wanted me to stay," he said. "I wish luck to all the candidates. There are people on other sides that I like too. The club is not the president, here there are many people who make decisions.
The president is not the owner."