Danilo reveals EPL star Rangers striker is compared with as his Champions League love affair starts with Neymar

He grew up watching his Brazilian idols Neymar and Gabriel Jesus playing in the Champions League. Now Rangers ace Danilo wants to sample it for himself.

The 24-year-old striker is just 90 minutes away from the group stages after the Ibrox side’s 2-2 play-off draw against PSV on Tuesday night. After coming off the bench in midweek, Danilo wants to start at the Philips Stadium – a venue he’s already scored at in his Feyenoord days. If he manages to repeat that feat, it could go a long way to seeing Michael Beale’s side progress.

And that would be the realisation of a childhood dream for Gers’ new £6million striker. He’s already made his Brazilian family proud just by turning pro. But if he could help fire Rangers to the promised land of the Champions League groups he’d be emulating some of his superstar heroes. Ahead of Wednesday’s mouth-watering second-leg in Eindhoven, Danilo said: “The Champions League means a lot. It’s a dream for me.

“The first-leg at Ibrox was the first Champions League game I got to play in. Before, I was only on the bench for Ajax. It’s a dream and I’m going to do everything I can to try and make that dream I had as a boy come true.

“For every young Brazilian kid, you watch the Champions League on the TV and want to play in it. When you hear the sound of that music, it’s goosebumps. It’s everything – you’re so emotional inside with the adrenaline.

“So it means a lot to me. It’s something special. I used to like watching Neymar in the Champions League.

“I also saw a lot of Gabriel Jesus. Everybody talks about me having the same qualities as him because I like to link up and look for the goal.

“I watched a lot of the Brazilian players when I was younger. It would also mean a lot for my family