Crossed paths: Palmeiras v Botafogo after Danilo saga | OneFootball

After accomplishing their mission in the Copa do Brasil and securing a place in the semifinal, Palmeiras now turns its attention to the Brazilian Championship. And the Verdão's next match will bring a series of reunions.

This Sunday (6), Palmeiras visits Botafogo at 6:30 p.m. at Nilton Santos Stadium, for the 26th round of the Brasileirão. The match will be broadcast on RecordTV, Premiere and CazéTV.

Barboza and Marlon return to Nilton Santos

On Palmeiras’ side, Alexander Barboza and Marlon Freitas will have their first chance to face the club they played for before joining Palmeiras.

Barboza left Botafogo midway through the season to strengthen Verdão. His departure brought to an end a spell marked by prominence and leadership in the black-and-white squad. At Palmeiras, the center back quickly became part of the group led by Abel Ferreira.

His relationship with his former club, however, was not left behind. During his presentation at Palmeiras, Barboza revealed that he spoke with former teammates before accepting the transfer and specifically mentioned Marlon Freitas and Danilo. The defender also said that he remains close to both of them.

Marlon Freitas, in turn, also swapped Botafogo for Palmeiras and will reunite with the black-and-white supporters at the stadium where he experienced important moments in his career.

And Danilo?

If Barboza and Marlon will be on the visitors’ side, Botafogo will have Danilo on the field — the very player who was at the center of a long transfer saga involving Palmeiras in the last transfer window.

The defensive midfielder was the São Paulo club’s top target during the negotiation period. Palmeiras’ board even submitted an offer of 20 million euros, in addition to the possibility of including Naves in the deal.

Later, Palmeiras signaled with new offers, at higher values, but Botafogo ultimately refused to sell the midfielder, who wanted to join Alviverde.

Danilo stayed at Botafogo and will now face Palmeiras for the first time after the whole process involving his possible return to the São Paulo club.

The reunion carries even more weight because Barboza himself revealed, during his presentation, that he used to joke with Danilo about accepting a move to Palmeiras.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.