Inside Newcastle's £25m Danilo transfer chase as Nottingham Forest truth emerges

Newcastle United continue to be in the market to sign a new midfielder this summer and that search has taken them in the direction of Brazil international Danilo Santos.

The Botafogo midfielder was part of Brazil's World Cup squad and his ability to play as a six or an eight makes him an appealing option as the Magpies look to bring another midfielder through the door.

Sandro Tonali's exit to Tottenham was softened by the arrival of highly rated teenage midfielder Sean Steur but with Bruno Guimaraes continuing to be linked with a move to Arsenal and Joe Willock being courted by other Premier League clubs they remain in the market for another midfielder to mitigate one of those players leaving.

A move for Johan Manzambi from Freiburg was hijacked by Aston Villa and Newcastle retain interest in Tottenham midfielder Lucas Bergvall. But former Nottingham Forest midfielder Danilo - valued at around £25million - remains high up in their thinking and his renaissance since leaving the East Midlands ought to be commended.

With that in mind, Chronicle Live has profiled his journey, with the insight of Danilo, a former Real Madrid coach and the expert opinion of a Forest reporter to bring you the inside story of his rise towards a potential move to St James' Park.

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As a teenager, Danilo was released by Bahia, a club in the north east of Brazil and he ended up moving 1,000 miles to the south to join Palmeiras.

It was with Palmeiras his career took off, thanks largely to former Real Madrid manager Vanderlei Luxemburgo. While playing in a training match between the under-20s and the reserves in 2020, one key quality Danilo possessed caught the eye of Luxemburgo, who was in charge of Palmeiras at the time.

"Do you know how I discovered Danilo?" he recounts in an interview with Jovem Pan. "During a training match between the Under-20s and the reserves, he immediately caught my eye: a left-footed boy who was winning the ball all over the pitch.

"One detail stood out: he never played the ball sideways or backwards, only forwards. He controlled it and accelerated the play. I thought, 'Who is this player?' So I inquired. They told me he featured occasionally but sat behind Patrick de Paula in the pecking order.

"I replied, 'Behind Patrick? He's better.' People thought I was mad because Patrick was the team's star player, but I was convinced. I realised the enormous potential he had.

"I said at the time that Brazil produced very few midfielders with the qualities needed to make it to a World Cup. But Danilo had strength, personality and football intelligence. He was already showing back then that he could go very far."

Danilo immediately became a regular fixture in the Palmeiras side and within three years a move to the Premier League materialised.

Nottingham Forest were taken by Danilo's talents and secured his arrival in January 2023, the same window they signed Jonjo Shelvey from Newcastle United.

Forest's former sporting director Filippo Giraldi heralded his arrival as a great signing for the 'present and the future' of Nottingham Forest and hopes were high they had secured a real coup.

For his first 18 months at the club, Danilo was plagued with inconsistency but when he was on it, his talent shone through - particularly in the final months of both his first two seasons at the City Ground.

"Forest fans used to joke that when it got to about April, that was when Danilo really came alive," Sarah Clapson, Nottingham Forest reporter for the Nottingham Post, told Chronicle Live.

"If you needed someone to bag a big goal or two in the latter stages of the season, he was the man. His ‘gun fingers’ celebration became synonymous with that time of year.

"In his first few months at Forest - after joining in January 2023 - he found the net three games in a row around April/May time and then he scored another big goal at a similar stage of the following season. Clearly he enjoys performing when the pressure is on!

"Danilo wasn’t at Forest for too long but he became a fan favourite and used to love it when they sang his name to the tune of ‘Gold’. He’s the type of person to always give his all and always sports such a huge smile - Nuno Espirito Santo used to describe his sense of joy and broad grin as being contagious.

"Having said all of that, there was an inconsistency to his game when he was at Forest. He had some really good performances but at other times found the pace and strength required in the Premier League tough to cope with and couldn’t always impose himself.

"He does have an energy about him and once he gets a bit of momentum is capable of providing a spark. In that sense, at the moment he seems full of confidence after his Brazil call-up and a really good few months at Botafogo."

It was at the start of the 2024/25 season where Danilo was really expected to kick on after a positive pre-season. Forest had signed Elliot Anderson from Newcastle that summer and he has since gone on to become a £116m player.

But it was Danilo who Forest had high expectations for, and then disaster struck. 10 minutes into the opening game of the campaign against Bournemouth a freak ankle injury saw the 25-year-old stretchered off.

"It was really sad. I know I’m still young, but I’d never had such a good, rewarding pre-season with Forest," Danilo said last year. "I was prepared, focused, and meeting all my goals on the checklist and on the pitch as well.

"Then unfortunately the injury came, it was really sad for me. I knew it was going to be a wonderful season for us, because of the pre-season we’d had. I was really driven to help my club and teammates to get to where we are."

He returned to action in February but could never really get a consistent run in the side as Anderson continued to shine as Forest flirted with Champions League qualification.

"It is easy to forget now, but he was first-choice in midfield alongside Ibrahim Sangare at the start of that season," Clapson added. "It was a horrible, horrible injury and he did remarkably well to come back from it as soon as he did.

"The squad loved having him back around the place but, perhaps understandably, Danilo wasn’t quite the same on the pitch when he did return. What happened was no doubt still on his mind and he seemed a little cautious.

"His injury opened the door for Elliot Anderson to stake his claim for a starting spot. Safe to say, the England man never really looked back after that!"

When the summer of 2025 rolled around, Danilo made the conscious decision to return to Brazil and sign for Botafogo, as a way to rediscover his form and his confidence. He left Forest as a popular figure but with a cloud of what might have been hanging over his spell.

"It was really a mixture of Danilo not being able to find form and Anderson doing quite the opposite," Clapson continued. "Football can move on quickly if players grasp their opportunity and it was just unfortunate for Danilo that he found himself down the pecking order.

"At the time Danilo was sold to Botafogo, the general feeling was Forest had got a decent deal. He was going to find it difficult to get game time and the club got a reasonable price for him (reportedly £18.5m).

"It’s so difficult to compare the Brazilian league with the Premier League, so it’s open to debate whether he would have hit the same levels had he stayed. It could also be argued it all fed into Anderson developing into a £116m player - and Forest have certainly come out of that deal very well.

"Some Forest fans have said they’d love to have Danilo back now, given a midfielder is on the club’s shopping list. Others have recalled his inconsistency."

His rebuild in Brazil could not have gone any better. Signed by Davide Ancelotti, son of legendary manager Carlo, Danilo rediscovered his rhythm at the end of the 2025 season.

But his 2026 form under a new coach, Franclim Carvalho, has been the real catalyst for why he has become such a sought after asset in this summer's transfer market.

His 10 goals and three assists in 20 matches across all competitions have made him one of the most proficient players in Brazilian club football when it comes to goal involvements.

It also caught Ancelotti Sr's eye, too, as he was named in Brazil's World Cup squad. Despite only being at Botafogo a year, the 2024 Copa Libertadores winners are believed to have seen that as an opportunity to make a profit on the £21million they paid to sign him from Forest.

Newcastle sporting director Ross Wilson would have been across that deal in the same role with Forest this time last summer and he is a player he knows well.

The 25-year-old featured in all but one of Brazil's five World Cup matches and that has created a shop window for his services. Newcastle could well make their move and he could return to English football a different beast to how he left it just one year ago.

So, would there be any regret at Forest if he goes on to shine at Newcastle?

"At Forest, Danilo could be a bit up and down. There’s no doubt he is a great teammate and a fantastic person to have around the place, and he certainly has quality - it’s just about making sure he is up to speed and can perform week in, week out.

"Going back to Brazil might have helped him in that sense. He’s obviously found form and been boosted by his selection for the World Cup (you’d struggle to find a Forest fan who didn’t love seeing him get his opportunity on the biggest stage). It might have helped him put that injury behind him and helped get his confidence back.

"It would certainly be interesting to see how he’d get on back in the Premier League. Players are always developing so I’m sure he’ll have learnt from his time at the City Ground and would be able to use that experience of English football to help him."