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Miguel DannyPortuguese footballer, midfielder for Zenit St. Petersburg and the Portuguese national team.
Date of Birth: 07.08.1983
Country:  Portugal |
Content:
Biography of Miguel Danny
Miguel Danny is a Portuguese footballer who currently plays as a midfielder for the St. Petersburg Zenit and the Portuguese national team. He has played in various positions including central, left, and right attacking midfielder. In 2008, he transferred to Zenit for 30 million euros, becoming the most expensive domestic transfer at that time.
Early Life
Miguel Danny was born into the family of Carlos Danny and his wife Gerete. His father was born in Madeira and moved to Caracas in 1979, where he opened a restaurant and met his future wife Gerete. They had a daughter named Katia and a son named Miguel. From a young age, Miguel showed interest in two sports - football and cycling. However, his parents felt he was too young for cycling and enrolled him in a local football section at St. Thomas de Villa Nova College. He quickly became the best player and was approached by agents from the Maritimo club, who offered him the opportunity to train in their sports school in Madeira. Despite his parents' opposition, Miguel's grandmother, Fernanda, who lived there, convinced them to let him pursue his football career.
Club Career
At the age of 7, Miguel moved to Madeira, where he lived with his grandmother for 10 years, training at the Maritimo club. His parents moved to Portugal when Miguel was 17 and opened their own restaurant in Funchal. On October 1, 2001, Miguel made his debut for the main team in a match against Gil Vicente, coming on as a substitute in the 62nd minute of the game, which ended in a 2-1 victory for his team. On December 15 of the same year, he scored his first goal for the club against Salgueiros in the 45th minute, but was later sent off in the 59th minute. The match ended in a 2-1 defeat for Maritimo. In the 2001/2002 season, Miguel played 20 matches and scored 5 goals, with his team finishing in 6th place in the league table.
At the age of 18, Miguel attracted the attention of several clubs, including Sporting and Porto, the country's leading clubs. As a former fan of Porto, Miguel agreed to transfer to this club, but Maritimo's management did not agree to the transfer fee offered for Miguel. However, they reached an agreement to sell the player to Sporting, who paid 2.1 million euros for his transfer. At Sporting, Miguel won his first trophy, coming on as a substitute in the 58th minute of the Portuguese Super Cup match against Leixões on August 18, 2002, which ended in a 5-1 victory for Sporting. On August 27 of the same year, Miguel made his debut in European competitions in a Champions League 3rd qualifying round match against Inter, replacing Ricardo Quaresma in the 75th minute. At the end of 2002, he returned to Maritimo on loan (at that time, Maritimo was coached by Anatoliy Byshovets, who, according to Miguel's own memories, "gave me a lot, as I was very young"), where he spent another one and a half seasons. After the loan ended in the summer of 2004, he returned to Sporting, where he played until the winter transfer window. He played 41 matches for various youth national teams.
International Career
Miguel refused to play for the Venezuelan national team, hoping to be called up to the main Portuguese national team. He made his debut for the Portuguese national team on August 20, 2008, in a friendly match against the Faroe Islands (5-0). Miguel came on as a substitute in the 55th minute wearing the number 18 shirt and immediately had a good chance, but hit the crossbar. He also provided an assist from a corner kick that almost resulted in a goal scored by Simao. In the national team, Miguel played a deeper role than his club, being active, taking the game into his own hands, and making incisive passes. He made his first start for the national team on October 15, 2008, in a match against Albania, which ended in a 0-0 draw. Despite playing against 10 men for most of the game, Portugal failed to win, and Miguel was substituted for Nani in the second half.
On November 19, 2008, Miguel played the full match against Brazil and opened the scoring in the 5th minute, but despite his goal, Portugal lost 2-6. Before the World Cup in South Africa, the Portuguese national team played a match against Mozambique, where Miguel scored a goal and provided an assist. The goal was the 800th goal in the history of the national team. He played three matches at the World Cup, including the knockout stage match against Spain, where Portugal lost 0-1 and was eliminated from the tournament.
Miguel did not make the squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, despite having a good season at his club. In spring 2016, he suffered a serious injury while playing for Zenit and did not make the squad for Portugal's victorious European Championship campaign in France.
