Despite strong speculation of a move to Steve Cooper’s Nottingham Forest, latest reports from Calciomercato.it indicate that Leeds are set to join the race for the signature of 21 year old Palmeiras midfielder Danilo.
The highly rated Brazilian midfielder is a key player for Palmeiras, and played a crucial role in the club’s consecutive triumphs in the Copa Libertadores in 2020 and 2021.
Danilo has been tipped for a move to the Premier League, with Nottingham Forest reportedly leading the race to sign the midfielder for a fee of around £18 million [via The Telegraph]. Other notable suitors in pursuit of the young ace include Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Now it appears as though Leeds are positioning themselves as a potential candidate to land the 21 year old’s services, with speculation that the Whites could rival offers from Nottingham Forest.
As noted by Calciomercato.it, Palmeiras were previously hoping to sell the player for no less than €30 million, though this is said to have been reduced, triggering new interest from Premier League clubs.
Leeds were reportedly turned down as a destination for Moroccan World Cup midfield star Azzedine Ounahi. Despite outbidding Serie A league leaders Napoli, its reported that Ounahi would favour a move to Napoli over Elland Road.
Seeing that Victor Orta and co. have reportedly missed out on their man, plus Mateusz Klich has left the club, its no surprise to see speculation around potential moves to bring a midfielder to Elland Road this transfer window.
Danilo often plays a deeper role in midfield, though has the capability to get forward [via TransferMarkt]. Tyler Adams and Marc Roca both look capable of holding down their positions in the middle of the park for Leeds, but there is a shortage of depth and a lot of football to be played this season. Additionally, at the age of 21, its possible that Danilo wouldn’t be put straight into Jesse Marsch’s starting lineup.
We’ll continue to monitor this one and keep you posted with any developments as they arise. It will be very interesting to see what sort of transfer budget remains for Leeds this window, with the club set to break their transfer record with a £35.3 million signing.