Newcastle United have splashed the cash this summer after qualifying for the Champions League last term with an impressive fourth-placed finish in the Premier League, but the core of talent at Eddie Howe's disposal has largely remained the same.
Having been purchased in an affluent and highly-anticipated PIF club takeover in October 2021, Newcastle are now poised for lasting success at the forefront of the game after spending so many years languishing below expectations.
And while money was spent this summer, business, in the new trademark fashion, was calculated and measured, with some astute additions enriching a cohesive and thriving outfit.
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With a net spend over the summer window that sits just eighth in the league chart, the Magpies' transfer model is one set to last, and the emblematic figurehead of the burgeoning success of this exciting era is none other than Bruno Guimaraes, who has been the midfield centrepiece from the maiden phase of Newcastle's new chapter under Howe's management.
How much did Newcastle pay for Bruno Guimaraes?
When Howe penned a contract with Newcastle in November 2021, replacing Steve Bruce at the helm, the club were winless and facing a relegation scrap, fighting to remain in the division.
If the Toon thought Howe's management could start the new era with a flourish, they were bang on the money and swiftly asserted themselves as one of the Premier League's most resurgent outfits, with a tremendous run of form after Christmas resulting in an 11th-placed finish, 14 points ahead of relegated Burnley.
The cogs clicked together on the pitch, but it was the shrewd business in the winter market that charged an almighty rise in form, and Guimaraes, who completed a £40m transfer from French side Lyon, was the catalyst in midfield.
Hailed as an "exciting talent" and a "standout" performer in France by Howe after he joined the fold, the Brazilian scored five goals and supplied an assist across 11 Premier League starts in the 2021/22 campaign, providing newfound quality and technical ability to demonstrate his ability.
It was the largest acquisition during a winter that saw Kieran Trippier, Chris Wood and Dan Burn all arrive to revitalise the foundering St. James' Park side, but amid the maelstrom of expensive activity that dictates the contemporary transfer business in football, it looks to be a shrewder signing by the month.
How much is Bruno Guimaraes worth now?
Having now chalked up 62 appearances for Newcastle, posting ten goals and six assists, the 14-cap Brazil star is unequivocally one of the best midfielders plying their trade on English shores.
Calm and composed, energetic and enterprising, Guimaraes is now regarded as a "world-class" component of a team imminently awaiting a two-decade-long wait for Champions League football, as has been said by teammate Burn.
Such is illustrated by the vested interest of first-rate European outfits such as Paris-Saint Germain and Barcelona, who have been eyeing up the £87m-rated midfielder, with separate reports also linking Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool with a transfer.
Such a towering valuation might look to dissuade the sides from furthering their intrigue in his services, but such is the 5 foot 11 ace's profound talent that it appears that that had not dissuaded them from retaining their position as suitors at the very least.
That £87m value actually represents a 117% rise in less than two years on Tyneside, and considering that he was purchased for no small sum of £40m, that is quite an impressive feat.
Newcastle are now actively working on a contract extension, hoping to rebuff the lucrative advances and tie down a staple of the new prosperity with a fresh bumper package, with transfer guru Fabrizio Romano claiming last week that talks are "at an advanced stage".
Why is Bruno Guimaraes worth that much?
So what's the secret in the sauce? Well, the 25-year-old has transformed a midfield and serves as the perfect counterweight to the likes of resurgent Joelinton, creative Joe Willock and energetic Sean Longstaff.
Once referring to himself as a "piano carrier" – a term coined in his homeland for someone doing the unseen work – the £120k-per-week phenom is both robust and reliable in the centre, orchestrating the play with his delightful range of passing and tenacity in the tackle – recycling possession and then swiftly initiating effective transition.
As per FBref, he ranks among the top 21% of midfielders across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 18% for shot-creating actions, and the top 15% for progressive passes and successful take-ons per 90.
This highlights both his creative flair and control with the ball at his feet, capable of beating his man to advance into promising openings in the central third.
An "absolutely magnificent" star, as noted by Toon and Premier League icon Alan Shearer, Guimaraes' supreme control and intelligence has proved to be the difference-maker for United in decisive moments, and it is a very real possibility that the rise might not have been quite so impressive had he not joined the club at the start of the exciting new chapter.
While Guimaraes' £40m fee was by no means paltry, it's a testament to his meteoric rise that the likes of Liverpool, PSG and Barcelona are interested in his signature, and that's despite the somewhat exorbitant £87m price tag.
However, his future looks set to remain on Tyneside, and with the talks over a new contract progressing, albeit slowly, there is little doubt that Howe and Ashworth hit the jackpot in sealing a deal for a man who is now one of the hottest commodities in Europe.
