Newcastle United were left ‘perplexed’ by the manner of Arsenal’s pursuit of Brazil midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, according to reports.
Arsenal are finally set to sign Guimaraes after a protracted transfer saga which included weeks of negotiations.
Mikel Arteta identified the 28-year-old as his top midfield target earlier in the summer but Newcastle insisted he was not for sale.
The Magpies were forced to soften their stance once Guimaraes made it clear he wanted the move and have finally agreed a deal with Arsenal.
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Guimaraes has been one of the most influential midfielders in the Premier League since his £40m move from Lyon in 2022, helping Newcastle qualify for the Champions League and win the Carabao Cup.
The Brazilian, who will have a medical this week, is set to join an Arsenal team that won the Premier League last season while reaching the Champions League final.
While a breakthrough has been made in the transfer talks, Newcastle remain unhappy with Arsenal’s pursuit, according to Sky Sports.
‘This started six weeks ago when intermediaries, essentially middle men, contacted Newcastle and asked if Bruno Guimaraes would be available and could he go to Arsenal,’ reporter Keith Downie said.
‘It was around about then that Bruno Guimaraes intimated that he would be willing to speak to Arsenal and would be up for moving to the Premier League champions.
‘I think what perplexed Newcastle over the last five or six weeks is the way Arsenal have gone about things. There was no direct contact, no formal offer, everything was played out through intermediares and that really confused Newcastle to an extent.
‘He will be a real big miss to this football club but it does leave Newcastle with money to spend in this transfer window, having now brought in £245m for Sandro Tonali, Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes combined.’
Guimaraes will become Arsenal’s third signing of the summer following winger Christos Tzolis and back-up goalkeeper Illan Meslier.
The Gunners are also working on a stunning deal for Guimaraes’ Brazil teammate Vinicius Junior, who is in a contract dispute with Real Madrid.
Speaking after Arsenal’s first pre-season friendly last week, Arteta said the club were ‘really active’ in the transfer market and would be ‘very ambitious’.
The Premier League-winning manager said: ‘We are really active trying to improve and evolve the team; that’s clear.
‘We expect to have movements in the next few weeks, obviously. We want to get better like anybody else, and you just can see the transfer market and our opponents, what we are doing.
‘We won’t sit still and we are very ambitious with what we are doing.’
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