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News
- 2 hours ago
'Special player': The €100m Premier League transfer Guardiola is DESPERATE for Man City to make
Suraj Radia
- 21 Nov 2025 16:02 CST
- 4 min read
Analysis
Pep Guardiola has revealed his admiration for an ‘incredible’ rival Premier League player who he once tried to sign but is now set to face in the Premier League this weekend.
City visit St James’ Park to face a Newcastle team captained by Bruno Guimaraes, who has continued to establish himself as one of the Premier League’s best midfielders after arguably the best start to a season in his career.
Current ETV
Bruno Guimarães
M, DM (C)
Newcastle
Bruno Guimarães
M, DM (C)
Newcastle
ETV Range
€70.5M - €86.2M
Guimaraes has scored three times in ten games this season already for Newcastle and starred for Brazil during the international break, playing himself in the heart of Carlo Ancelotti’s midfield ahead of next summer's World Cup.
The 28-year-old’s consistent displays for Newcastle have long-seen him linked with a move away from Tyneside, including heavily to City last year, and Guardiola admitted again this week that he was a ‘big fan’ of the midfielder.
“It’s not just this season, for many years since he was at Lyon, we started to realise he was a special player. I think Newcastle made an incredible signing and he’s an idol there,” Guardiola said.
“I think these types of players, when they play a lot and for their national team, season-by-season, they get better and better. I’ve always been a big fan of him.”
Pep Guardiola and Bruno Guimaraes: the love-affair that never blossomed
Since joining Newcastle in January 2022, Guimaraes has missed just eight Premier League games for Eddie Howe’s side and the Brazilian has repeatedly ended the season with the most ground covered of any player in the division, while his role as captain in ending the Magpies' 70-year wait for a domestic trophy last season cemented his status as a club legend.
Guimaraes has also ranked among the top players for duels won, tackles made, progressive passes completed and take ons, highlighting the all-round play that led to Newcastle inserting a £100 million (€115m) release clause in his contract in 2023.
Newcastle had genuine fears that City would activate that release clause, particularly in 2024 when the Magpies were facing desperate PSR struggles and Guardiola’s side were in the market for a midfielder, although they were unable to sanction such a vast outlay on one player.
Guardiola is previously said to have ‘insisted’ City sign a player he has called ‘exceptional’, while Guimaraes has also admitted to speaking to the City boss – not about a transfer – and once called him the ‘best coach I have ever seen’.
However, the window for a move may have closed for both parties, with Guimaraes settled at Newcastle and regularly emphasising his love and commitment to the club, while City may also be unwilling to splash out on a player in his late twenties even with his qualities.
Newcastle are set to open talks with Guimaraes over a new deal, with his current contract set to expire in 2028, and there is a real possibility that he finishes his career at St James’ Park, having spoken of his children growing up as ‘Geordies’ and soon starting school in the region.
Guardiola would certainly appreciate a player of Guimaraes’ pedigree in midfield, particularly as doubts emerge over Rodri’s long-term future at City, but it appears as though any admiration between the duo will remain long-distance going into their clash in Newcastle on Saturday.
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