Manchester City are reportedly inching closer to completing the signing of Danilo from Real Madrid.
According to a report in Sky Sports, Danilo is set to undergo a medical in the USA to complete his move to Manchester City. The Premier League side are on the verge of signing the Brazilian defender after Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane confirmed that the player has left the club’s pre-season training base.
Danilo joined Real Madrid in the summer of 2015 after a fruitful three-year spell with Portuguese giants Porto. The player arrived at Santiago Bernabeu with a lot of hype surrounding him, having been hailed by many as the ‘next Dani Alves’.
But, the last two years have been a struggle for Danilo as he failed to justify his billing for Real Madrid thus far. Largely playing second fiddle to Dani Carvajal on the right side of defence, the Brazilian has started just 40 games in the last two seasons, and is now on the cusp of a summer exit.
Zinedine Zidane has confirmed at his press conference that Danilo “has gone now”. pic.twitter.com/z5VqSSSrdq
— City Watch (@City_Watch) July 22, 2017
Surprisingly, the interest in Danilo doesn’t seem to have died down, with a host of top clubs linked heavily with him in recent weeks. Widespread reports had earlier suggested that the race to sign the player was going to be a head-to-head battle between Chelsea and Juventus.
But, Manchester City have stormed into the lead, with the two aforementioned mentioned clubs unwilling to meet Real Madrid’s €30 million valuation of the player. The Citizens, however, are happy to pay the asking price, and the Brazilian defender is now set to undergo his medical with the Premier League club.
City recently secured the services of Kyle Walker from Tottenham to provide Pep Guardiola with some much needed relief as far as defensive acquisitions are concerned.
The English defender, though, is currently the only recognised full-back at City following the departures of Pablo Zabaleta, Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna and Aleksandar Kolarov. While Benjamin Mendy is expected to complete his move to the Etihad soon, Guardiola has asserted the need for more depth in his squad.
Therefore, Danilo has been identified as a viable target. The Brazil international is now set to complete the move after Zidane confirmed that he had left Real Madrid’s pre-season training camp in Los Angeles.
The reports suggests that the two clubs are set to agree a €30 million deal, with the move subject to completion of medical. It now remains to be seen if Danilo is able to resurrect his stuttering career, and stake his claim for a starting berth with the Brazil national side at next year’s World Cup.
