BACK in 1987 Newcastle United introduced Brazilians to English football in the form of Mirandinha, a pocket-sized forward who did a reasonable job and had an exceptional chant (look it up). Was the often dour nation ready for the shimmying grace such players could offer? Probably not, but the footballing world in 2022 is different in almost every way and the year started with the news that Brazilian Bruno Guimarães was moving to St James’ Park from Lyon for a fee that could rise to a club record £42m. Guimarães was coveted by many so it was a more than a slight risk to move to a club still deeply embroiled in a relegation battle, albeit one he ultimately helped them escape from with relative ease.
It’s fair to say that Eddie Howe’s reputation had diminished in his time away from management after leaving Bournemouth but his performance as Newcastle manager has been almost flawless, transforming their playing style, rebooting players who were already at the club and gradually introducing shrewdnew signings, Bruno Guimarães being the most notable. The Brazilian’s first three appearances were as a very late substitute, with games four and five also coming from the bench but earlier. His first start came away at Southampton in a 2-1 win, and the winning habit just stuck. Newcastle have won 14 Premier League games since the start of last season and Bruno – signed in late January remember – has appeared in 12 of them.
Guimarães is a deceptive footballer in a number of ways. At six foot he’s taller than you think (an inch taller than Thiago Silva, for instance) and despite being tagged as a deep lying midfielder at various points, he’s revealed himself as one of the most dynamic midfielders the league has seen for a long time, and is already being hailed by Newcastle supporters as one of the best players the club has had in the Premier League era. But jumping back to the Mirandinha era for a moment, that Brazilian enjoyed the service of one of the most progressive midfielders England has ever produced in Paul Gascoigne. Now of course Guimarães and Gascoigne are not exactly the same but someone making 83 progressive carries in only 18 Premier League appearances will certainly attract those comparisons, especially when wearing the same black and white striped shirt. There are few better sights in football than someone who can effortlessly break the lines in central positions and in Bruno Guimarães Newcastle now have that weapon.
Guimarães also has the passing range to go with the running, as evidenced by his through balls, one of the most difficult deliveries to pull off. A completion rate of 71% is testament to the structure Eddie Howe has put in place at the club but in Bruno he has the sort of weaponised delivery system that makes it work. Bruno Fernandes, for instance, has a completion rate of only 41% in the same period, while Kevin De Bruyne is on 43%.
Is Bruno Guimarães the best Premier League player not playing for a Big Six team? If he keeps up his 2022 form for the rest of the 2022-23 season, then you’d have to say that is absolutely the case. The English top-flight’s gilded upper class must be looking at his displays for Newcastle and seriously wondering whether they missed a trick in January, especially as Newcastle are heading in only one direction, and could well be serious rivals for a place in the top six this season. Guimarães could turn out to be a similar sort of catalyst as David Silva was for Manchester City a decade ago. Silva signed for a club looking to break into the Premier League’s elite and left 10 years later with four Premier League titles, two FA Cups and five EFL Cup in his back pocket and as one of the club’s greatest ever players.
Guimarães is turning out for a club who have not won a major domestic honour since the 1955 FA Cup. If he can usher in even a fraction of David Silva’s honours list then he will be a Newcastle United legend for eternity, and the early signs are that he is up to the task.
