The Brazilian was punched in the face by defender Liam Gordon as he nodded, forcing both players to leave the field after receiving lengthy treatment. Footage showed the player – who scored his third goal in just his fourth game since his £5m move from Feyenoord in July – showing signs of severe swelling as he left the field, including Beale expressed concern about the nature of the injury.
“I asked the doctor about Danilo and the news was not good at all,” the Ibrox manager said. “Dani has a broken cheekbone, so we’ll have to wait and see how long he’s out. He is in the hospital and I hope he will have surgery. It was a disappointing moment for the team. Dani had some problems but got back in shape after two weeks. He scored a goal, which was a great moment for him, then he got injured.
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As for the deadline, we will have to wait. But looking at the swelling, you can immediately see that it is a serious swelling. There was nothing there, two boys were fighting for the ball. It was a beautiful goal and I’m very happy about it. Dani is very brave and he has this in the box. He’s an attacker type with his mobility.
Beale said he was “generally satisfied” with his team’s work on the day, although he admitted that the meeting was “disjointed” and “we still have work to do.” Having been hit hard by his own supporters after defeats to Celtic and PSV Eindhoven, the Englishman could have been pleased to see the fans who came after his team late in the game. A fact he accepts is important for Real Betis at Ibrox on Thursday in the Europa League.
“Every team needs its fans behind it,” he said. “In two home games in Europe this season, we scored four goals against Servette and PSV. In both games we felt we had a chance to score more goals. We are playing against a team that is sixth in La Liga and has a coach who has been there a long time. “It’s a good team. Look at the players on their teams and what they have done in their careers. It’s important that we stand with them – and the fans stand with us. Now we have 4 home games in 10 days in 3 competitions. We are focusing on Real Betis, which will be a completely different challenge, different style, different pressure. But we still need our fans. They were fantastic for the team today, so give them credit as it hasn’t been a pleasant few weeks for them.
