A €90m bargain? Arsenal’s Bruno Guimaraes transfer is the deal of the summer

Updated: 31 Jul 2026 18:04 BST |
3 min read

Robin Bairner
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Chief Editor

Accredited football journalist and editor covering the game since 2006

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In a summer in which Premier League clubs seem to have lost all sense of proportion, Arsenal’s deal to sign Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle for around €90 million (£70m) is positively a bargain.

Forget that Bruno’s Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) sits at €63.1m, for certain clubs, the usual rules have been put on hold by a unique set of market circumstances that have driven prices up beyond recognition.

Central to this has been the clamour of the Premier League’s top clubs to sign central midfield players, with each of the traditional ‘Big 6’ involved in this market, even if Liverpool and Chelsea have so far kept their powder dry in regard to signings here.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have chiselled away at Newcastle, broken their resolve and cost them a manager, and stand close to completing a move for one of best in the business.

And the deal that Mikel Arteta’s side has struck appears a favourable one in the context of the current market.

Bruno a bargain compared to Premier League rivals

Already the Premier League has seen three central midfielders leave for figures above the fee that Arsenal will pay for Bruno.

England international Elliot Anderson has joined Manchester City in an enormous €135m deal from Nottingham Forest, Sandro Tonali left Newcastle for Tottenham for €108m and Matheus Fernandes left relegated Wolves for Spurs in a €99m deal.

Bruno Guimaraes’ ETV is far higher than both Anderson and Fernandes, and similar to that Tonali. And yet he has moved for substantially less than both.

In this perspective, Arsenal have done very well to secure one of England’s premier midfield talents.

Why did Newcastle accept this price?

So what’s prompted Newcastle to buckle under Arsenal’s interest, having previously been so adamant they would not sell?

While an official answer is unlikely to be forthcoming immediately, once again the circumstances surrounding the deal likely provide important clues to the decision of the St James’ Park side.

This is a team, after all, that was effectively bullied into selling Alexander Isak to Liverpool late in the transfer window last summer. Their policy of battling to keep the Swede against his will ultimately proved incorrect. By delaying the inevitable, they were forced to pay a premium price for Nick Woltemade, who has failed to justify his lavish fee and may be moved on already.

FootballTransfers has reported that Bruno has been agitating to move, which has not aided the negotiating position of The Toon and has no doubt driven his price downwards.

At least by brokering a deal now, Newcastle are making a clean break with the issues they have had over the last 12 months for the arrival of new manager Matthias Jaissle.

Amid this chaos, Arsenal have stepped in, and with a €90m deal for Bruno agreed, they are ready to profit in one of the transfer coups of the summer.

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