The preseason is officially underway with the Gunners facing Girona for their first official friendly on Saturday as the defending Premier League champions look to capitalize on last season’s successes. Bolstering the side has been a main emphasis, with Christian Tzolis and Ilan Mellier already in the fold.
It looks like the midfield will get a major boost as reports from numerous outlets this morning confirmed that Arsenal are finalizing the transfer of Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle
for approximately £80m. With everything seemingly agreed upon, there is little left beyond the medical, scheduled for Monday, and the official club announcement.
The path to his signing has been a tricky one. Despite early reports indicating that the player was easily sold on the move, Newcastle were adamant that they were not willing to sell their captain, especially after losing Sandro Tonali to Spurs as they looked to stave off a mass exodus of key players for the second year in a row. Manager Eddie Howe seemed convinced he’d stay, but also did not sound like he had much say in transfer matters during an interview last week. Whether the transfer of Bruno had any influence on it, Eddie Howe resigned from his position shortly after.
There’s been a palpable bit of division over this transfer from Arsenal fans. He’s a seasoned PL and Brazil national team veteran and undeniably talented, but his reputation as a hot head and a “dirty” player has given a few fans reservations, while others are more than willing to look past his previous transgressions (Jorginho’s head is still ringing) if he helps the club win more trophies.
How he will fit into the midfield is the big question. Martin Zubimendi came into the side last season as the 6 with Declan Rice as the 8. By the run in, though, Zubimendi’s form had dipped and Rice was deployed at the base of the midfield more often with Myles Lewis-Skelly. Guimaraes is a quality Rice analogue and can play both the 6 and the 8 at a high level, which means that Arteta will have an excellent deputy to take minutes off of both he and Zubi. That he can slide into the starting lineup without a distinct drop in quality already makes him a smart acquisition.
The one certainty is that he will get his minutes. By the end of last season, it was clear that the wear and tear of challenging on four fronts had taken a heavy toll on the Arsenal side, and no position group bore the brunt of that quite like the midfield. Martin Zubimendi limped to the finish line, Martin Ødegaard was in and out of the side with injuries, Mikel Merino missed the last three months of the season, and Declan Rice pushed himself to the absolute limit to help get the title over the line. And all of that was followed up by an expanded World Cup.
Bruno might rub some people the wrong way, but he’s the type of player that seems eager to push himself at the highest level while bringing fight to the pitch – for better or for worse. He also profiles perfectly as the player you hate when he’s not on your side, but love when he is. He’s a leader and joins a growing army of former club captains at the Emirates as they begin their push to defend their title and continue elevating the club.
With this move all but sealed, all eyes will turn to the attack, where Arsenal are working to potentially make the shock-signing of the summer. We will, of course, update as events warrant.
