Arsenal and Manchester City are interested in signing Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. Both British and international media have widely reported this, and chances that an interesting bidding war may come up between the two and possibly between other teams.
Newcastle is having difficulty of its own, and that, too, can affect the deal and the overall outcome for the 26-year-old player. It’s an interesting turn of events as the two title-chasers have been down this road before.
Who’s Bruno Guimaraes?
Bruno Guimaraes Rodriguez Moura is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Premier League club Newcastle United and the Brazil national team.
Guimaraes joined Premier League club Newcastle United in 2022 on a four-and-a-half-year contract for a reported fee of up to £40m. He made his debut as a late substitute in a 3–1 win against Everton. On 7 October 2023, Guimarães signed a new five-year contract with the club. This contract has a clause that allows a transfer before the five-year expiration. He played 81 games for Newcastle in total and scored 13 goals.
The Release Clause
Guimaraes has a release clause in his contract that’s set at around £100 million. This means that Newcastle can decide to release him to another club before the end of the term of the contract, but the lowest price another team would have to pay is $100 million.
However, the contract is written so that it leaves room for negotiation about a potentially lower release fee. That’s what the negotiations between the three clubs will be about in the upcoming months. Most claim that there’s a good chance Newcastle will go below the set amount.
What does Guimaraes Want?
We don’t know much about Guimaraes’ plans at this point. It has been widely reported that the player and his team are aware of the offers coming from both teams. Media has also reported that Paris Saint-Germain is interested, and some have said that Guimaraes may be interested in that offer.
However, Guimaraes has also bought a family home in Northumberland, which many see as a sign that he doesn’t plan to move soon. Guimaraes is also reportedly very close with a teammate, Joelinton, who recently signed an extension to his contract with Newcastle, and it may be a part of the decision to snub PSG or even Man City.
The Rivalry
Both teams are in the running for the title, and there’s an ongoing rivalry between the two, of which this transfer may be a part. There are already sports betting sites, such as the ones on this list by Cryptomaniaks, that allow players to bet on how the transfer will eventually go. Crypto sports betting sites are available to players from all over the world and have live odds that change based on the new reports.
A similar battle took place last year, or the signature of Declan Rice. Arsenal eventually won that race and paid a record fee of £105 million to West Ham United.
It’s important to note, however, that we’re still dealing with rumors only and that none of the sides we mentioned has formalized their intent to make a deal. When they do and when agents and lawyers get formally involved, we’ll know that we’re in the midst of another intense negotiation.
Newcastle United’s Record
Newcastle are seventh in the Premier League after 24 games and have already lost twice as many league games (10) as they did in the whole of last season (5). They have also conceded six more goals (39) than in the entirety of their 2022-23 Premier League campaign (33).
It’s important to note that the performance isn’t Guimaraes’ performance.
In the Premier League in 2022-23, he averaged 53.7 passes per 90 minutes with an accuracy of 84.6%. That has increased to 62.5 passes per 90 and an accuracy of 86.6% this season. His creativity is basically identical, creating 1.38 chances per 90 last season and 1.42 this, while his tackles per 90 is slightly down from 2.6 per 90 to 2.3.
However, it’s also important to consider the financial aspects of the deal, as Newcastle fights to stay aligned with the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules.
Profit and Sustainability Rules
The Premier League updated its rules regarding profit and sustainability in March of this year, and the changes caused some problems for some teams. The rules outline how much money a team needs to have at their disposal at all times so that there’s no risk of it going bankrupt in the middle of a season.
The rules are as follows:
– Clubs can only lose £15m of their own money across those three years.
-They can lose £35m/year with owner investment (averaged over three seasons).
– Any transfer costs can be spread out over a maximum of five years
How does it Affect Newcastle?
The changes in profit and sustainability rules may affect Newcastle and their decisions on transfers. The club’s latest accounts revealed a loss of £155m over the past three seasons. That’s over 50 million more than the allowed amount.
Some claim that this means that Newcastle will have to make a deal on Guimaraes with any of the other teams interested in it. Others, however, say that the regulations are far more complex than that, and investments in the women’s team, charity foundation, and academy can be removed from the deficit.
“We’re compliant,” said Darren Eales, the chief executive. “If we’re going to get to where we want to get to, at times, it’s necessary to trade your players,” “It’s a counterintuitive part of the PSR system that there is an incentive to trade players if you want to reinvest.”
We want to be a top-six sustainable club, but Tottenham’s latest accounts show £440m [in turnover]. We are at £250m, so it’s a big step even to the lower end of the top six. Manchester City are at £710m. There’s a long way to go.”
Other Options
If it comes to it, Newcastle may need to sell some of their players to meet the demand. However, it doesn’t have to be Guimaraes, especially as he has shown his intent to stay put and has often expressed how pleased he is with the team.
Other transfer options include Alexander Isak or Sven Botman. There are also rumors that Newcastle could leave St James’ Park for a new stadium. This could work out because, for a while now, Newcastle has been looking into expanding the stadium, which is too small for its needs, with just a 52,000 capacity.
Conclusion
Both Arsenal and Manchester City show interest in signing Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. The Brazilian player joined Newcastle in 2022 and boasts a release clause of around £100 million. Reports show that Newcastle is willing to lower the fee as a part of the negotiation.
Newcastle’s financial concerns, compounded by Premier League profit rules, may influence their decision. However, Guimaraes has just bought a new home in the North, showing that he doesn’t plan to move anytime soon. Manchester City and Arsenal have been in a similar bidding war since last year.
