 Danny in action for Zenit in 2010 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Daniel Miguel Alves Gomes | ||
| Date of birth | 7 August 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Caracas, Venezuela | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Zenit St. Petersburg | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2001 | Marítimo | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2001–2002 | Marítimo | 20 | (5) |
| 2002–2005 | Sporting CP | 10 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | → Marítimo (loan) | 29 | (1) |
| 2005–2008 | Dynamo Moscow | 98 | (16) |
| 2008– | Zenit St. Petersburg | 96 | (35) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2003–2006 | Portugal U21 | 17 | (0) |
| 2008– | Portugal | 26 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18 October 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 14 August 2013 | |||
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Daniel Miguel Alves Gomes (born 7 August 1983), commonly known as Danny, is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg in the Russian Premier League, as anattacking midfielder.
He spent most of his career in Russia, to where he arrived at the age of 21 from Sporting.
Danny represented Portugal at the 2010 World Cup.
Club career
Marítimo / Sporting
Born to Portuguese parents in Caracas, Venezuela, Danny moved to the island of Madeira at a young age.[1] There, he developed his football skills in the youth teams of C.S. Marítimo,[2] making his professional debut in a 2–1 league home win against Gil Vicente F.C. on 1 October 2001.[3] A few months later he scored his first goal in a 1–2 loss at S.C. Salgueiros, also being sent off in the 60th minute;[4] he finished his first season with five goals in 20 games.
Having signed to national powerhouse Sporting Clube de Portugalfor €2.1 million after that sole season, Danny was immediately loaned back to Marítimo, returning in June 2004 and going on to appear in 12 official matches for the Lions.
Dynamo Moscow
In February 2005 Danny joined Russia's FC Dynamo Moscow in a deal worth €2million.[5] The club was also involved in other transfer deals of Portuguese and Portugal-based players at the time, namely Maniche and Derlei.
Danny would eventually be the one with the most success in the country, being awarded the "Player of the Year" award and leading the team to a second-place finish in 2008.[6] His last appearance for Dynamo came on 23 August 2008 in a 1–1 away draw against FC Spartak Moscow,[7] and he finished his spell in the capital with 97 league games, scoring 16 times.
Zenit
On 24 August 2008 Danny was bought by FC Zenit St. Petersburg for a fee of €30 million, which made him the most expensive player of the Russian Premier League.[7][8] Upon his arrival manager Dick Advocaat hailed him as "the best midfielder in Russia",[6] and he made his club debut in the 2008 UEFA Super Cup game against Manchester United, where he scored the winning goal, later being named Man of the match in a 2–1 final win;[9] as Zenit finished the season in fifth place the player contributed with ten league goals, the competition's joint second-best.
On 14 June 2011 Danny signed a contract extension with Zenit, prolonging his stay in Saint Petersburg by a further four years.[10] He played in all six group stage games in the 2011–12 edition of the UEFA Champions League, scoring in a 3–1 home win against F.C. Porto[11] as Zenit eventually finished second in its group, level on points with winners APOEL FC – the match also happened to be the player's 100th appearance in a Zenit jersey;[12] on 6 February 2012, however, he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury to his right knee, being sidelined for the following eight months.[13]
Danny returned to training in August 2012, and played in his first match since the injury in September.[14][15] Shortly after Igor Denisov was sent to the youth team for improper conduct, he was appointed club captain.[16]
Down 0–2 at home to Málaga CF on 21 November for the Champions League group stage, Danny exchanged passes with Tomáš Hubočan before scoring Zenit's first goal. With three minutes left in the game, he missed from less than a meter out before the ball was rebounded to Victor Fayzulin, who managed to find the net for the final 2–2 draw.[17] On 4 December, against A.C. Milan, he netted the game's only goal as his team won at the San Siro in the last contest; the result was in vain though, as the Russians finished third and were relegated to the UEFA Europa League.[18]
In Zenit's home match against FC Anzhi Makhachkala on 10 December 2012, played behind closed doors because of injuries sustained by Dynamo's Anton Shunin when he was struck with flares by Zenit supporters on 17 November,[19] Danny picked up a red card for dissent in a 1–1 draw, which left his team in third place.[20]
International career
On 20 August 2008 Danny made his debut for Portugal in a friendly against the Faroe Islands, a 5–0 home win.[6] On 19 November he scored his first goal for the national side, opening the score against Brazil; however, it turned out to be a sour one, as the hosts came from behind to take it 6–2.[22]
After having appeared with Portugal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, in an eventual group stage exit,[23] while also playing regularly with the under-21s, Danny was picked in the squad that appeared at the2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.[24] He played three games in the tournament in an eventual round-of-16exit, including the full 90 minutes in the 0–0 group stage draw against Brazil.[25]
Danny was regularly used by managers Carlos Queiroz and Paulo Bento during the UEFA Euro 2012qualifying campaign. On 3 September 2010 he netted in a 4–4 draw against minnows Cyprus at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimarães, after the national team led 4–2.[26] He missed the finals in Poland andUkraine however, due to a serious injury
