MY ACCOUNT
Newcastle are ready to splash the cash in the transfer market — and Lyon midfielder Bruno Guimaraes looks set to be their next big-name acquisition.
Despite the Ligue 1 club insisting a deal has not been agreed, the Brazilian international is reportedly on the verge of a £30million move to the North East.
The 24-year-old has been a wanted man this winter, with Newcastle close to fending off competition from Arsenal and Juventus for his signature.
Guimaraes is in line for his fourth cap in tonight’s World Cup qualifier against Ecuador and while he is away in South America, we look at what he would bring to St James’ Park.
Plenty to address
Newcastle need to strengthen in a number of positions to avoid dropping into the Championship — and midfield is clearly an area that needs addressing.
The statistics do not make for pleasant reading at either end of the pitch this season, with the Magpies scoring the fourth-least goals in the Premier League (21) and conceding the second-most (43).
But while additional defensive recruits will clearly be on the Toon’s agenda, a conduit between the team’s rearguard and their offensive players would go a long way towards improving their overall cohesion.
Luckily for Eddie Howe’s outfit, Guimaraes has just the skillset for the job.
In his own words
An ambitious player, Guimaraes has thrived at Lyon since Peter Bosz took over as head coach in the summer.
Speaking back in October, he said: “I think I’m an intelligent player, but I’m developing a new way of thinking, of playing.
“It means a lot to me, intelligence, to have a vision of the game, of a sense of play.”
He added: “I want to make the World Cup squad, I have everything to play for this season.”
The former Athletico Paranaense star will be keen to showcase his talents in an elite division like the Premier League in order to nail down a spot on the plane to Qatar come November.
Pass master
Only six Ligue 1 midfielders have created more chances this term than Guimaraes (36) — who, impressively for a deep-lying playmaker, averages 1.98 opportunities created per 90 minutes.
Three of those 36 have resulted in assists, including a sublime ball over the top for Lucas Paqueta to open the scoring in Lyon’s 1-1 draw with Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month.
He made the pass with his supposedly weaker left foot too, having skilfully and quickly worked his way out of a tight spot under pressure.
With only three players in Newcastle’s entire squad outperforming Guimaraes’ 1.29 chances created per 90, it is not hard to see how he will improving their goalscoring potential.
On the move
Guimaraes’ game is not all about picking out pinpoint passes from his own half though. He is also fond of taking on players when the opportunity arises.
Among Ligue 1 midfielders to attempt 50 or more dribbles this term, only Lille’s Renato Sanches has a higher success rate (73.58%) than Guimaraes (66.07%).
As for the current Newcastle crop, no central midfielder has reached that dribble threshold, with Joe Willock (36) the closest.
However, he cannot match the Brazilian’s completion rate at 47.22%.
Getting stuck in
While he is generally regarded as a playmaker, Guimaraes has also shown himself to be a well-rounded performer in the centre of the park.
He has attempted 2.75 tackles per 90 this campaign, which is only beaten by three Newcastle midfielders — Sean Longstaff (3.84), Miguel Almiron (2.84) and Willock (2.83) — despite playing in a team that dominates the ball with an average of 58.3% possession.
And he is not just indiscriminately committing himself to challenges either, with a more than commendable tackle success rate of 62%.
With so many strings to his bow, it is no surprise that Newcastle are banking on the Rio de Janeiro native to turn their season around and they could use him for the trip to struggling Everton after the winter break.
