Danilo: ‘I cried when Alex Sandro left Juventus’
Danilo has opened up on one of the most emotional moments of his career, the day his closest friend and long-time teammate Alex Sandro left Juventus, in a heartfelt documentary produced by Flamengo TV ahead of the new Copa Libertadores campaign.
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The Brazilian defender spent several years alongside Alex Sandro at the Turin club, having previously shared dressing rooms at Santos and Porto.
Their bond, forged across three different countries and multiple trophy wins, runs far deeper than football, and Danilo’s words made that abundantly clear.
Danilo reflects on Alex Sandro bond & Juventus exit
“When Alex left Juventus it made me cry on the pitch, because we had fought so many battles together,” Danilo said, with quotes via the Corriere dello Sport.
“When he left I didn’t think it would be that difficult. It was then that I truly felt his absence. Understanding how much we have supported each other during our careers and in difficult moments is something that makes me very satisfied, because it has extended to our personal lives and our families.”
Alex Sandro, speaking in the same documentary, was equally emotional in his tribute to a friendship he describes as lifelong. “We talk every day and share feelings that few people can imagine,” he said.
“For me he has always been a mirror, someone I have always admired enormously. Our story as brothers, friends and teammates will last a lifetime, it won’t end here at Flamengo.”
The two are now reunited once more at the Rio club, with Danilo having returned to Flamengo, the club where he grew up, after his time in Europe. He admitted that winning the Libertadores last season and scoring in the final against Palmeiras would have been the perfect moment to retire at 34, adding that only the unfulfilled dream of a World Cup with Brazil kept him going.
On that front, Danilo had warm words for Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti, whose path has crossed his own in unexpected ways. “When I was at Porto and moved to Real Madrid, it was practically Ancelotti who bought me, and then when I arrived, he had already been sacked,” he said with a smile. “The game is like that. But we found each other again more than ten years later in the national team. It is an enormous privilege to work with him.”