Arsenal have reached an agreement with Newcastle United to sign captain Bruno Guimaraes for a £75 million fee, sources confirmed on August 5 [1, 2, 3, 4]. The 28-year-old Brazilian midfielder joined Newcastle from Lyon in January 2022 and has made 195 appearances, scoring 31 goals for the club across all competitions [5, 1, 2, 3]. Last season, Guimaraes scored nine goals and provided eight assists, helping Newcastle clinch the 2025 League Cup under his captaincy, the club's first domestic trophy in years [5, 1, 6, 7, 2, 3].
Newcastle initially rejected Arsenal's opening £70 million offer on August 3, holding out for a fee closer to their £80 million valuation, amid rebuilding plans and a managerial change after Eddie Howe's departure last week [5, 8, 7, 3]. Guimaraes personally expressed his willingness to join Arsenal if a suitable offer arrived, informing Newcastle’s new manager Matthias Jaissle of his intention to leave during preseason training in Spain [1, 8, 3].
Guimaraes is expected to leave Newcastle’s preseason camp soon to travel to London for a medical ahead of the formal signing [8, 3]. Arsenal’s manager Mikel Arteta has not publicly confirmed the deal but said the club are "very active" and "very ambitious," adding they need to "increase the competition internally" and identify gaps in the squad [5, 6, 9, 10]. When asked directly about Guimaraes, Arteta responded cautiously: "I’m not going to talk about any players who aren’t Arsenal players. I can tell you at the moment that something happens and we can announce it [6]."
Newcastle will receive around £7 million from the transfer via a 20% sell-on clause owed to Lyon [3]. Guimaraes has two years remaining on his Newcastle contract, with an option for another year [1, 8, 2].
Arsenal are preparing to defend their Premier League title starting August 21 and view Guimaraes as a key midfield addition for the campaign [1, 6, 7, 2, 9, 4, 10]. The next step in the transfer will be Guimaraes completing his medical in London ahead of a formal announcement.
