Arsenal are the latest club to enter the growing race for Danilo, with the Botafogo midfielder continuing to attract attention ahead of the World Cup.
The Brazilian midfielder was already attracting serious attention after his huge start to the season in Brazil, but things are clearly accelerating now as the World Cup gets closer.
At this point, there is a growing expectation that Danilo will leave Botafogo after the tournament – especially because his value keeps climbing almost every week.
The former Nottingham Forest ace has already managed 9 goals and 3 assists in 21 matches this season, which is an excellent return for a midfielder.
He has become one of the faces of this Botafogo side, played his way firmly into Carlo Ancelotti’s plans with Brazil, and is now expected to be part of the final World Cup squad.
Price going up fast
That combination of form, World Cup exposure and growing Premier League interest, is changing Botafogo’s demands very quickly.
A few weeks ago, the conversation around Danilo was sitting closer to €30m (£26m). Now the picture looks very different.
Globo Esporte say Botafogo are increasingly thinking in the region of €35m-40m (£30m-34m), while RTI Esporte even claims the club would start conversations at around €45m (£39m).
And the plan is pretty obvious. Botafogo do not want to sell before the World Cup because they believe the tournament could push Danilo into an even higher bracket financially. Looking at the amount of clubs now involved, it is not hard to see why they think that.
Arsenal make their move
The big new development is Arsenal entering the race. According to Globo Esporte, Arsenal have already made contact with Danilo’s staff.
There are no formal talks with Botafogo at this stage, but Arsenal are clearly gathering information and positioning themselves around the player.
He is energetic, aggressive without the ball and increasingly productive in attack. His ability to press, recover possession and still arrive in the box fits the type of dynamic midfielder Mikel Arteta often likes to work with. At 24, there is also room for further growth.
The Brazilian is not a traditional holding midfielder either. He prefers driving forward, attacking space and contributing higher up the pitch, which helps explain his strong goal numbers this season.
Andas we already covered, he wants to return to England and show he can thrive at the highest level after what happened at Forest.
Naturally, Arsenal would offer a very different sporting environment and level of stability compared to the situation he walked into at Nottingham. However, with World Cup pedigree and a standout year in Brazil makes his case stronger.
Premier League clubs everywhere
Fulham remain one of the strongest contenders and have already discussed figures around €30m (£26m). Manchester United already made an initial contact with Botafogo. AndNewcastle and Tottenham are also in the picture.
Outside England, Napoli, Bayer Leverkusen, Monaco, Benfica, Galatasaray, Milan and Atlético Madrid have all appeared in the conversation at different moments. Zenit are still interested too, but Danilo is not keen on that move right now.
Arsenal will need to be smart on this one. Danilo is turning into one of the most wanted midfielders in the market heading into the World Cup – and the Champions League finalists are now in the middle of the story.