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Newcastle United maintain that influential skipper Bruno Guimaraes is not for sale, despite the Brazilian reaching an agreement to join Arsenal, according to reports.
The Gunners made an approach to sign Guimaraes last month but their opening offer of £55 million, which was communicated through intermediaries, was turned down by Newcastle.
The reigning Premier League champions then returned with an improved offer of £60m for a player who only has two years remaining on his contract, only to see Newcastle reject that too.
Indeed, the St James’ Park are said to be looking for a figure closer to what Tottenham paid for Sandro Tonali, so closer to that £100m mark.
As for the player himself, Guimaraes has increased the pressure on Newcastle by informing them that he wants to join Arsenal this summer.
Reports in France also suggest that Guimaraes has already agreed terms on a five-year deal with the Gunners, as he pushes for a switch to north London.
However, talkSPORT reports that in response to Arsenal’s interest, Newcastle are ‘maintaining a not-for-sale stance’ for the Brazil international.
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Guimaraes perturbed by Newcastle direction
Guimaraes is understood to have concerns over Newcastle’s direction, following their failure to qualify for Europe after a hugely disappointing 12th-placed finish during the 2025/26 campaign.
He has also seen two of his top teammates depart in Tonali and Anthony Gordon, who joined Barcelona in a £69m deal in late May, while full-backs Tino Livramento and Lewis Hall are also being heavily tipped to move on.
Guimaraes, who registered four assists at the World Cup but missed a penalty in the 2-1 defeat to Norway, still has two years remaining on his Newcastle deal, which doesn’t leave the club in as strong a negotiating position as they would like.
For their part, Arsenal are said to be ‘encouraged’ that an agreement can be reached for Guimaraes, who has played a major role for Eddie Howe’s side since his £40m switch from Lyon back in 2022. Indeed, he has gone on to score 31 goals and lay on 32 assists in 195 games in all competitions for the club.
And speaking last week, Guimaraes’ former teammate at Newcastle, Emil Krafth, detailed just how important Guimaraes is to the Magpies.
“He’s the most important player in the team,” Krafth told the BBC. “He manages the game so well, both physically and technically.
“I hope they can keep him.There’s a lot of rumours surrounding him, which is not surprising because he’s had a good World Cup and a great season.”
For Arsenal, though, it would allow Mikel Arteta to pair Guimaraes with Declan Rice in a new-look midfield, after Martin Zubimendi’s form completely tailed off in the second half of the title-winning campaign.
Newcastle, meanwhile, have already made moves to cope with the potential loss of their captain, securing the capture of Dutch talent Sean Steur from Ajax, while they are also closing in on the signing of World Cup star Johan Manzambi.
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