£80m star “has directly told” manager he wants Arsenal transfer

Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes has reportedly directly told his manager Eddie Howe that he wants to join Arsenal.

The Brazil international has been a star player at St James’ Park in recent years, but it looks like he could be the next of their big names to be heading out of the exit door.

Newcastle sold Alexander Isak to Liverpool last year, while this summer they’ve already lost Anthony Gordon to Barcelona and Sandro Tonali to Tottenham.

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— HandofArsenal (@HandofArsenal) July 10, 2026

– Bruno G has directly told Eddie Howe he wants to join the English Champions
– Kia still doing all the communication between the clubs
– Arsenal internally discussing another offer
– Bruno G preferably wants it sorted before pre-season either way but wont do a Isak.

— HandofArsenal (@HandofArsenal) July 10, 2026

As per the reliable Arsenal news source, Guimaraes has spoken with Howe and would ideally like to join the Gunners in time for pre-season, while the club are internally discussing making a new offer.

Bruno Guimaraes to Arsenal – what we know so far

Guimaraes clearly seems to be a top target for Arsenal in midfield, with our understanding being that the Premier League champions have so far had two offers rejected for the former Lyon man.

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Newcastle will no doubt be eager to keep Guimaraes, but we’ve been informed by sources that Arsenal are cautiously optimistic of a deal being done at around £75-80m.

If Guimaraes continues to push for a move, it’s surely going to be difficult for NUFC to persuade him to stay, and it’s debatable if it’s in their interests to keep an unsettled player anyway.

Do Arsenal need more in midfield?

Arsenal already have Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Mikel Merino, and Christian Norgaard in midfield, so why the interest in Guimaraes?

Firstly, Rice and Zubimendi will surely need a bit more rest next season after playing so much football in 2025/26. The fact that they were run into the ground so much is also a clear sign that Mikel Arteta is unsure about Norgaard, for whom an exit this summer would not be at all surprising.

Lewis-Skelly, meanwhile, is young and raw, and may well end up playing left-back more often, even if he did have a good run in midfield towards the end of 2025/26.

Merino can play in midfield but these days seems best as an extra attacking option, ideally off the bench as he earns a real reputation for being the perfect super sub.

That leaves a clear role for Guimaraes, who can also arguably offer more quality on the ball than Rice and Zubimendi, giving AFC a new dimension going forward.