Man City boss Pep Guardiola gives a thumbs up to one of his players. (Getty Images)
When Danilo first arrived at Manchester City for a fee of around £26million from Real Madrid in 2017, many saw him as the back-up option to Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy.
But with Benjamin Mendy injuring his knee less than two months into his debut campaign, the Premier League expected Danilo to step up and take his place in the starting line-up but things did not go as planned. While the former Real Madrid man did step up, he did so unconvincingly for most of the season, making 14 starts in the Premier League alone.
This combined with the Brazilian’s failure to adapt to the English league’s high-octane and extremely physical style of football, led to Pep Guardiola opting to use Fabian Delph as a left-back on more than one occasion. This continued well into this season, but with Benjamin Mendy returning, things were supposed to change for Danilo.
Once again as unfortunate as it sounds, Mendy injured himself and has been ruled out for most of this season but again, Danilo has failed to lock down a first-team spot. The 27-year-old has been used sparingly by Pep Guardiola, making just seven appearances in the Premier League and just one in the Champions League.
However, after Kyle Walker’s terrible performance against Crystal Palace where the reigning Champions lost 3-2, Guardiola opted for Danilo.
While the 27-year-old did show exactly what he can do with five consecutive starts, as he effectively became the new right-back for Manchester City.
But then came the performance against Newcastle United and it showed more than anything why Danilo has struggled to get into Manchester City’s starting XI. Things got so bad, as he played a major part in letting the Magpies score both goals on their way to a shock 2-1 win.
The Brazilian needs to improve and his spell at Real Madrid showed exactly what can happen if he doesn’t do that. Pep Guardiola is clearly not a patient man and if the 27-year-old full-back doesn’t show some sign of moving forward, instead of consistently moving backwards, things could get even worse for him once Benjamin Mendy returns to full fitness.
But at the moment, there is a place in the Manchester City back-line for Danilo if he wants it and while it’s inevitable that Kyle Walker will return as a right-back, the Brazilian has it in his locker to play as a left-back if need. That ability of his needs to be showcased more, otherwise he runs the risk of becoming a flop in not one but two of Europe’s biggest leagues.