One new frontman man is already in the door at Ibrox but Michael Beale is casting his net wide to try and land another.
Danilo of Feyenoord is the latest to be subject of a bid, although the Dutch champions have turned down Rangers' initial offer. Talks over a loan move for Brighton’s Abdallah Sima are ongoing while interest remains in Cyriel Dessers of Cremonese. But it seems Danilo is the man Beale really wants, although he’ll have to go back with a bigger bid if he's to be successful in his pursuit.
With Alfredo Morelos gone and Antonio Colak seemingly surplus to requirements, Beale needs depth in attack, but also goalgetters if he is to replace the strike rate Morelos could once boast for the Glasgow side. Kemar Roofe remains but fitness injuries mean he can’t be relied upon to be available over the course of an entire season.
But just who is the latest target? Record Sport takes a more in depth look.
Who is Danilo?
At just 24-years-old, the Brazilian has plenty of development time ahead of him, although he’s already playing at a good level. Ajax brought him to Europe as a teenager after already being on the books of some of the Brazilian big boys in Corinthians, Vasco De Gama and Santos. As far as the Dutch giants go, there are few better places on the planet to learn your trade.
After two goals in 14 top team outings, Ajax loaned Danilo to Twente three years ago. Netting 17 times in 33 games caught the attention of their great rivals Feyenoord, who snapped him up last summer. 14 goals and four assists in 48 appearances helped them secure the Eredivisie title. He has another three years on his contract at De Kuip, so getting Feyenoord to the table may take a bit more cash.
What sort of player is he?
Quite simply, a central striker who can play in the hole if need be. All but one of his goals last season came from inside the penalty area, although he’s also willing to shoot from further out, with less success it has to be said. Over half of his efforts - 58 per cent - came from the central area in front of goal, a position he takes up regularly. Only two were with his weaker left foot and he scored double that with his head.
As well as finding space in the area, Danilo is adept at running in behind defenders with an Instat index of 76 per cent for creating openings. He can also assist too, contributing 1.5 key passes per match on average.
What can Rangers fans expect?
If Sam Lammers’ skillset is anything to go by, then Danilo would be signed to play off the Dutchman. His ability to drop deeper offers more variety going forward, while the ability to run in behind means he can gamble on flick ons, which would make the pair more of an old fashioned striker partnership.
With Fashion Sakala and Rabbi Matondo still on the books and Beale looking at adding another winger it’s unlikely Danilo would be deployed out wide. 81 per cent of his time on the pitch at Feyenoord was as a central striker with just 12 per cent in attacking midfielder. Wide on the right was even rarer, at just 7 per cent.
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