Bruno Guimaraes has never agitated to leave Newcastle United.
Any conversation about his future – and there are going to be plenty in the run up to a big summer at St James’ Park – needs to start there.
And watching him play at Nottingham Forest you could not doubt his commitment, long before the luscious second goal that secured Newcastle a significant away win.
With their season screeching towards a crossroads, it was a perfect time for the Brazil midfielder to step forward. Freed to roam in the more attacking No 8 role than the one Eddie Howe usually deploys him in, Guimaraes rose above the slugfest around him with a performance of trademark class.
With unity fraying ever so slightly at Newcastle – there remains a debate raging about the inclusion of Dan Burn at left-back and ongoing questions about successive transfer windows where the club have failed to land the defensive midfielder the team surely craves – Guimaraes remains a reminder of how far they’ve come and the possibility that lies ahead.
He kissed the badge after his second goal and it felt authentic. Few doubt that his affection for the club – where he has previously said he feels a sense of belonging – is genuine and he is far from a mercenary, going as far as laying down roots in the north-east. His father Dick Gomez, the former taxi driver whose cab number Guimaraes borrowed for his shirt number, has become a celebrity on Tyneside and is feted like a hero when he takes his seat in away ends.
While insiders acknowledge Guimaraes is hugely ambitious, i understands there hasn’t been a single conversation with anyone at the club about anything other than achieving those aims at St James’ Park.
“Sometimes people speak a lot about me. I just speak about football. I’m very happy here and I like how the fans think of me here,” he told Sky Sports after the game.
For all the talk about the summer, there is a path to keeping the Brazil midfielder at the club. But there are also two huge complications: firstly the £100m release clause that was negotiated as part of his contract renewal last year; and secondly Newcastle’s own need to speculate to accumulate by way of player trading in the summer.
As i revealed last month, the sale of Guimaraes for the release clause instantly frees up an estimated £80m of Financial Fair Play (FFP) wiggle room for them in the summer. That would open up a lot of possibilities because for FFP purposes (due to a process known as amortisation), signing a £60m player on a five-year contract is only recorded as a £12m player on that year’s books.
Selling him gives the club the option to significantly strengthen in two or three areas of the squad. But i understands that is not Newcastle’s ideal plan. While succession planning is under way, the preference is to retain Guimaraes and find other ways to raise funds.
That makes sense because he is almost irreplaceable in this Newcastle team. He ticks every box for Howe. In a team that wants intensity as well as quality, he has come to represent the ideal.
Newcastle’s biggest concern is whether they will end up powerless if one of the heavyweights triggers the release. Real Madrid have been raised as a possibility but they have a 24-carat midfield already. Paris Saint-Germain are certainly interested, but is Guimaraes interested enough to go elsewhere?
Here is where Newcastle have to do their bit. The sales pitch to him two years ago was flawless and the Magpies backed up the big promises with substance, signing good players and showing intent to become Champions League regulars. They may have to do something similar in the coming months.
After a difficult January the club need to get on the front foot again – on and off the field. It is still an enticing project and this season remains alive, both in the FA Cup and the hunt for European qualification.
Wins will change the narrative away from the frustration with FFP that has set in with some supporters. Realigning expectations is fine as long as it doesn’t spook class acts like Guimaraes.
After all, they will get where they want to go much quicker with him on board.
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/ay2PYJE
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