Bruno Guimaraes is ‘one of a kind’ and Eddie Howe is hoping Newcastle United can sign the midfielder for the long term.
The 25-year-old’s current deal runs until 2026 but Newcastle are keen to hand over improved deals for their valuable assets and preliminary talks have taken place with Guimaraes’ representatives.
While Howe is unsure where exactly those discussions are, he would like his Newcastle side to be built around the Brazilian in the years to come.
“As far as I know, I prepared for the game. I’m not sure,” Howe said during his press conference in front of Wolverhampton Wanderers on whether there had been any progress in the negotiations.
“It’s a very important piece (in our project). If you look at our team I think he’s a unique player, you won’t find too many players like him. The way he receives the ball, his technical execution under pressure, his eye for a creative pass.
“He’s very important and he’s at a really good age, I think he’s only going to get better and his attitude is top-notch. He has a unique blend of qualities and I wish he stays here for a long time.”
Guimaraes has taken a few hits to the ankle in recent weeks but has participated fully in training and is fit for Sunday’s game.
Fabian Schar, who missed the 2-0 defeat at Manchester City with a concussion described by Newcastle as “very mild”, also suffered during the Carabao Cup final defeat by Manchester United.
“We hope so. He’s trained well this week so we’re happy to see him again,” Howe said of Schar. “We took a few hits from the game against Manchester City but we hope it’s nothing too serious. ”
After the home game against Wolves and the trip to Nottingham Forest, there will be a two-week international break during which Newcastle will be without a game for 16 days.
The non-international first-team players are traveling to Dubai for a warm-weather training camp during this period.
“That’s the plan,” Howe said. “We’re going to have quite a lot of players away, so I think we’re going to have a pretty small group, but that’s the plan as we have it at the moment.”
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