EXCLUSIVE
I idolised Ronaldinho but family had to stop me quitting football before dream Premier League transfer
Danilo has dreams of becoming one of the Premier League's star men, but the Nottingham Forest man almost gave up on football altogether.
The Brazilian midfielder was born in Bahia and found his love for the game when he joined the Bahia youth academy at the age of seven.
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Spending eight years at the club, who are now part of the City Football Group run by Manchester City's owners, Danilo received the crushing news that he was being released at the age of 15.
Despite holding dreams of making it as a professional, the central midfielder decided to give up on football as he struggled to cope with the early rejection in his career.
But speaking to marvelbet369.com, he revealed how grateful he is that those around him ensured that he kept his eyes on the prize.
Danilo said: “I’m really happy. Talking about giving up, it was just a personal phase in childhood when thinking about giving up, but I’m really happy that I persisted.
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“I’m grateful to my parents and my family and other people around me, including my coaches at the football academy.”
One person who was integral to Danilo sticking with the sport was Dego Freitas, a football coach and community organiser who helped underprivileged and at-risk young people through football.
Freitas was able to pull some strings to get Danilo a trial with Serie B side Cajazeiras, before the talented star earned a move to Palmeiras' under-17s side in 2018, a team who were based 1000 miles south of his base in Bahia.
Within two seasons with the Brazilian giants, Danilo was a first team regular for the club and had won two Copa Libertadores titles, the Brazilian title and the Copa do Brazil.
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Part of Danilo's charm was his desire to play on the front foot, something that clearly came as a result of his childhood role model, Ronaldinho.
"It's always been the same since I was a kid," he explained, as a few of the flicks and tricks that he picked up from the Brazilian legend saw him start to capture the attention of Europe's biggest clubs.
It was Danilo's performance for Palmeiras against Chelsea in the Club World Cup Final in February 2022 that really got pulses racing, with Arsenal, Monaco and the Blues all considering a move to bring the Brazilian to Europe.
However it was Nottingham Forest who won the race after striking a £17.8million deal with Palmeiras in January 2023 to bring him to the City Ground.
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The challenge of playing in the Premier League was great, with Danilo full of praise for three individuals in particular who have given him sleepless nights since arriving.
Asked who his toughest opponents have been, Danilo said: "Manchester City as a team, with the ball in play they have so much of the ball on the pitch.
“Liverpool as well, with individuals like [Mohamed] Salah who is really difficult to mark.
"Then there’s Arsenal with Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli on the wings. They’re very difficult to mark as well.”
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After scoring 12 in 141 appearances for Palmeiras, Danilo has dreams of making a similar impact under Steve Cooper and certainly showed that he was more than capable of thriving in England
The 22-year-old has managed three goals and two assists in 15 appearances during the second half of last term, a platform that he says that he's keen to build on during his first full campaign in the Premier League.
“I’m really happy here [at Nottingham Forest]," Danilo said.
"Happy like I was in Palmeiras and I hope to continue and pick up where I left off last season and achieve even more.”
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