KEY POINTS:
Among the immigrants at a citizenship ceremony in Wellington recently, a 29-year-old Brazilian pledged his allegiance to New Zealand and the Queen. In effect, he was pledging an oath to the All Whites.
Wellington Phoenix midfielder Daniel became a New Zealand citizen on December 1 and now that he has a Kiwi passport in hand he is significantly closer to pulling on an All Whites shirt.
His aspirations to play international football for his adopted country are now in the hands of Fifa and New Zealand Football.
It is hoped clearance will come before Ricki Herbert's side travel to South Africa for the Confederations Cup in June and, ultimately, November's World Cup playoff against the fifth-placed Asian country.
"When he first came out to play for the Phoenix it was almost a tongue-in-cheek comment, that he should play for New Zealand," Herbert remembered. "But Daniel took it on board and clearly thought about it. The process started more than a year ago.
"It would be great if he could play for us. He's a great guy and a very, very good player.
"He would offer a different dimension for us and would be very close to being a starter in the side.
"He has been very patient up to this point and he will need to be patient until he receives clearance from Fifa and New Zealand Football but deep down he will be excited about it."
That was obvious when he waltzed into the Phoenix offices in downtown Wellington clutching his crisp new New Zealand passport the day after it was delivered.
He is a popular member in the side and among fans and his notoriety extended to the fact he won the 2007 Dominion-Post Welly for Wellington Sports Personality of the Year ahead of All Black Ma'a Nonu. He also added the Four-Four-Two magazine Import of the Year award for 2007.
Daniel frequently volunteers his time for community events, often without the club's knowledge - like the time they discovered a You Tube entry of him juggling a football with students at a Tawa College assembly.
He's a quirky individual, although lacks creativity when it comes to finding names for his son.
He and his wife, whose name is Danielle, named their son Daniel.
"It's not too confusing in our house because everyone has nicknames," he says. "We call our son Danielzinho, or Little Daniel, my wife is Danica and I'm just Daniel."
Daniel's commitment to his adopted country is such that he intends to live here beyond his football career.
He will be in Wellington for at least another two years having recently signed an extension to his Phoenix contract. Next season he will qualify as a local player, opening an opportunity for Herbert to sign another foreigner.
"I love the beautiful beaches, the mountains and the people here, and the security of the city," Daniel says. "It wasn't a hard decision [to become a New Zealand citizen]. New Zealand and Wellington is a great place to live and this is a great opportunity for me to play international football.
"I played in Brazil for a long time but I never had the opportunity to play for the national team. Here New Zealand have given me this chance and I'm very pleased about it. My family are supportive of my decision and say that if I'm happy, they are happy, too."
His time on the field for the Phoenix has been limited of late as he struggles with a niggly injury. Both the Phoenix and All Whites could do with a fully fit Daniel.
