News breaking on Saturday that Arsenal have made an offer to Newcastle United to buy Bruno Guimaraes.
This story broken by the very reliable David Ornstein.
So I think we can pretty much take it as read that this has happened.
I have to say that this is great news for Newcastle United fans.
No doubt plenty of you wondering if the sun has got to me…
Another Premier League club trying to sign Bruno Guimaraes, Newcastle United’s best player, our captain and talisman, how on earth can that be great news?
The devil is in the detail, as is usually the case.
David Ornstein stating: ‘Arsenal have made a verbal offer to sign Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes. The proposal, which was communicated to Newcastle through intermediaries, was worth less than £60million and has been rebuffed by the north east club. Newcastle insist they will not entertain offers for the 28-year-old Brazilian, who is currently with his country preparing for a World Cup last-32 tie against Japan in North America.’
It is obviously a positive that (as we would expect!) David Ornstein says United are insisting they won’t entertain any offers for the NUFC captain.
The even more positive thing though is that Arsenal have thought it worthwhile to put in an offer of less than £60m. Other journalists have since reported it as an offer of £55m from the Gunners for Bruno Guimaraes.
The idea of any club offering £55m for such a brilliant player as Bruno Guimaraes is embarrassing enough.
However, for anybody to think that an offer such as this would see Newcastle United entertain it in any way, is simply off the scale.
This is what I mean by great news for Newcastle United fans, if Arsenal were say offering more like £100m for Bruno Guimaraes then I would have some concerns, but almost half that…?!!!
This is even more ridiculous and embarrassing that Arsenal have seen fit to do this, when today the news coincides with David Ornstein also revealing that Manchester City and Forest have agreed a transfer fee of £116m for Elliot Anderson.
I wish the lifelong United fan all the best and he is a very good player BUT he isn’t anything like as good as Bruno Guimaraes. The idea that Arsenal think they could sign Bruno for half (or even less) of what Anderson is going for, it blows my mind!
As well as Newcastle United not wanting to sell them. The fact is that the top Newcastle United stars will only be allowed to leave under any circumstances, if for starters the NUFC valuation is met. There aren’t any bargains to be had for the vultures.
It makes me laugh when fans of the usual suspects go on and on about how their club is going to take away one of Newcastle’s best players and how they can’t wait to see them playing for Man U, Tottenham, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Arsenal etc. Then when the speculation kicks off yet again with the media claiming their team could sign one of those Newcastle United stars and that NUFC would have such and such valuation on that player, these same fans then start going on about how ridiculous the claimed Newcastle valuation is!
You can’t have it both ways. You can’t be going on and on about how you’d love to sign somebody, then complain when that (potentially selling) club sees the player worth as much as you claimed to want them.
We see it all the time and for example you get Man U fans dreaming of signing Lewis Hall but at the same time claiming he isn’t worth more than £40m!
There are many components needed to make any transfer happen. A club that wants to buy, a club that is prepared to sell, the player interested in the other club, the buying club then willing to pay the asking price if the other things line up.
I don’t really care what Arsenal fans or indeed any other fans of other clubs think about Bruno Guimaraes and what they reckon he is worth. As a Newcastle United fan I know how valuable a player he is to us, I know he a top class player and a top class character and leader.