Arsenal abandon Bruno Guimaraes pursuit after Newcastle demand £100m

Arsenal are ready to pull out of a move for Bruno Guimaraes after being misled over the price they would have to pay, leaving the Newcastle captain’s future at St James’ Park in fresh doubt. The Gunners had identified the Brazilian as a priority target after he intimated a wish to leave, and reports had even claimed he agreed a five-year deal. But The Telegraph reported that Arsenal believed an offer of around £50m would be enough to convince Newcastle to sell, having been told as such by Guimaraes’ representatives. Instead, the Magpies are demanding about £100m — a figure the north London club will not pay. Former Newcastle owner Mehrdad Ghodoussi slammed the suggestions as “utter nonsense.” The twist is a bitter one for Guimaraes, who in January 2022 chose Newcastle over Arsenal and declared the club could become bigger. A song was even written: “He could have signed for Arsenal … but he instead wanted to wear the famous black and white.” Now, four and a half years on, his dream of moving to the red half of north London has hit a wall. Newcastle have already lost Sandro Tonali to Tottenham for up to £100m, Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for £69.3m, and Alexander Isak in the past 12 months. Rebuilding the squad was always on the cards this summer after a settlement with Uefa. Selling Guimaraes, who turns 29 in November, would open further headroom within financial rules. But his value to the team is stark: without him, Newcastle have won only two of the 16 Premier League games he has missed since joining, with a win percentage of 12.5% and 0.7 points per game. With him, those figures rise to 50.7% and 1.7 points per game. “I would be absolutely devastated,” said season ticket holder Liam Phillips. “His departure would be very symbolic in terms of what it says about the trajectory of the project. Newcastle have lost Isak, Gordon and Tonali in the last 12 months. To lose Bruno would be very alarming.” For now, Guimaraes remains a Newcastle player, with a contract until 2028 plus an option for a further year. Eddie Howe had already denied claims that Manchester United had agreed a deal, calling it “a nonsense story” and stressing: “Bruno’s our captain, he’s fully committed. He’s injured at the moment, his only focus is coming back to fitness.” With Arsenal seemingly out and Newcastle’s hierarchy yet to sell their talisman, the question hanging over St James’ Park is whether the club’s ambitions can survive another summer of departures.