Manchester City were dealt a massive blow after Benjamin Mendy was ruled out of action until the new year after undergoing knee surgery.
The only natural left-back in Pep Guardiola’s squad, the Frenchman has struggled with injury since arriving at the Etihad, giving his Spanish boss quite the selection dilemma.
In Mendy’s absence, Guardiola has had to use midfielder Fabian Delph as a makeshift in the position, while Oleksandr Zinchenko has also filled in at times.
Going forward, though, Danilo could be an even better fit when it comes to deputising for Mendy.
The Brazilian arrived from Real Madrid last summer to provide cover for Kyle Walker at right-back, his preferred position. But with Mendy constantly being unavailable, there could be room for Danilo to play more of a prominent role in the team.
The 27-year-old has enough in his locker to reinvent himself just like Delph did last season. Technically, Danilo is a very good player, while he also has the sort of intelligence and understanding that can see him thrive in different roles.
Guardiola has already used Danilo at left-back, showing he has faith in the Brazil international to perform in the position. Considering all of that, the defender may feel like he should have been given more minutes than what he has received during his time at the Etihad.
Looking at his time at Real Madrid, though, where he did look fairly poor at times in 1v1 situations, Guardiola has good reason to be cautious. But even so, compared to Delph, Danilo is still probably the more efficient individual when it comes defending.
Nevertheless, it is the former who Guardiola has looked towards when he has not been able to call upon Mendy and, to the England international’s credit, he has rarely let down his boss with his consistent performances.
In that sense, Danilo could learn a lot from his team-mate as he looks for more minutes and to become a more important figure in the squad.
