The Brazil star might have been left out of the starting XI of Paris Saint-Germain’s forgettable 0-0 draw with Montpellier on Saturday, but he still managed to hit the headlines domestically when he took to Instagram to make an appeal for a lost dog.

“I lost my beautiful doggie around Malmaison Forest (Paris)… her name is Mari… please let me know if you find her. She is my life,” the former Barcelona and Juventus full-back posted.

A post shared by DanialvesD2 My Twitter (@danialves) on Sep 22, 2017 at 11:09am PDT

Many publications instantly jumped to the conclusion that Alves had lost his dog, but they missed the fact he had advertised that he was posting on behalf of Brazilian model Joana Sanz.

Thankfully, the story had a happy ending as Mari was returned to her owner, who posted a video of herself reunited with her pet, albeit three days later.

A post shared by Joana Sanz (@joanasanz) on Sep 24, 2017 at 8:29am PDT

“When you despise his strength, is when a warrior differs from the rest, no matter how old he is, no matter where you are, no matter who you are, never stop being what brought you here … never stop fighting, never stop respecting what you do, never stop fighting for what you want, but above all, never abdicate your values, they will keep you competitive and winning until you decide to put an end to your story and inspire other little dreamers like you … … when this is not enough, try to overcome yourself every day and every year. WHAT A YEAR,” he posted.

A post shared by DanialvesD2 My Twitter (@danialves) on Sep 21, 2017 at 4:12am PDT

“Congratulations to my capitain @thiagosilva_33, who, besides being one of the greatest defenders I have seen, is my friend … I celebrate not only your day but your friendship, brother. I wish you all the best in your life !! I love you,” the world’s most expensive player said.

A post shared by Nj 🇧🇷 👻 neymarjr (@neymarjr) on Sep 22, 2017 at 4:22am PDT

Meanwhile, in what was otherwise a quiet week for him, he name dropped another famous sporting friend, this time Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton.

 

A post shared by Nj 🇧🇷 👻 neymarjr (@neymarjr) on Sep 19, 2017 at 11:20am PDT

The centre-back, though, is perhaps most famous for his role in the 2006 World Cup final, when he provoked the great Zinedine Zidane to breaking point and caused the France star to aim a headbutt at him. “It’s always great to see you, brother,” the striker commented.

A post shared by Mario Balotelli🇮🇹🗿👪 (@mb459) on Sep 22, 2017 at 4:49pm PDT

Before the game, Mario urged his team to “focus”, and while they struggled to do that, they did eventually get over the line.

A post shared by Mario Balotelli🇮🇹🗿👪 (@mb459) on Sep 22, 2017 at 4:49pm PDT

He had to be content with posting videos from his summer holidays, including this unusual conversation with a camel.

A post shared by Patrice Evra (@patrice.evra) on Sep 22, 2017 at 4:28am PDT