Dante

Dante Bonfim Costa Santos is a Brazilian centre back who plays for Bayern Munich. He was born on 18 October 1983 in Salvador, Bahia.

Dante began his career in Brazil playing at various local clubs. In 2001 he joined Juventude and was included in the first team after a season with the youth team. However, the player didn’t appear in the starting line-up until in the second season, but straight after, he was signed by the French Lille. On 14 February 2004 Dante made his debut for the French club in a friendly Ligue 1 match against Monaco FC coming on as a substitute for Mathieu Debuchy in the 84th minute. Lille won Monaco 1-0. For two seasons in the club he played only 12 games.

On 21 January 2006 the defender signed for the Belgian club Charleroi, but managed to spend there just a season with 23 appearances and 1 goal. On 31 December 2007 Dante was purchased by Standard Liège. The Brazilian’s debut fell on the match against his former club Sporting Charleroi, which his new team won 5-2. The footballer spent all 90 minutes on the pitch and amassed a goal. Dante stayed at the club for two years, playing 63 games and netting 2 goals. Thanks to his good performance, he was considered to be one of the best defenders of the Belgian league.

On 23 December 2009 the Brazilian was acquired by Borussia M’gladbach in a transfer deal worth €2.5 million. On 20 March 2009 Dante made his debut in the Bundesliga in a match against VfL Bochum, coming on as a substitute for Tobias Levels in the 67th minute. The game ended in a 0-1 defeat. In the second half of 2008/09 season the defender played a total of 10 matches for Borussia and became the first team regular. In 2009/10 Dante made 32 appearances for the club and established as a reliable and powerful centre back.

On 26 April 2012 the Brazilian signed a 4-year contract with Bayern Munich and the transfer cost around €5 million. The contract started on 1 July 2012.