Bruno Guimarães

[Shays Given Tim Flowers]

I mean Beardsley is one of my favourite footballers of all time. I think that's probably the thing that distinguishes Bruno is that we've not really had a player like him ever, so he doesn't have an obvioius comparator. 

 

'Better' is quite a tricky concept to nail down too. 

 

 

 

Edited August 9, 2022 by Shays Given Tim Flowers

[Happinesstan]

15 minutes ago, Kid Icarus said:

 

Yeah, he has a completeness to his game (goals aside) that it's hard to pin on anyone else, but that in itself is just his strength like the others have different strengths too. I think you would say Beardsley for example makes up for it in the skills, goals, and assists department, where he lacks the defensive side that Bruno has. 

Beardsely in his pomp was fantastic at the high press, before it was even a thing.

[Shays Given Tim Flowers]

Beardsley, Gascoigne and Ben Arfa probably have comparable levels of ability with a football at that their feet. 

[Shays Given Tim Flowers]

I just fucking love Bruno, don't think i'll ever tire of watching him play. 

[gbandit]

Bruno controls a game better than any midfielder we’ve had. Beardsley was clearly a better dribbler and goalscorer, Lee was an outstanding goalscorer too. Ben Arfa had the highest ceiling in terms of footballing technique but his overall game can’t compare to the other names even though I love him. I just love having a midfielder who just bosses all aspects of the game. It’s like he’s an 8 or 9 out of 10 in all areas of his game. 

[Happinesstan]

It's interesting to talk about who is best, but we'll never agree. When it comes to NUFC players i rate them on their contribution to the club. As such Shearer and Lee sit ahead of Beardsley [just], Ginola and HBA.

[jonny1403]

https://www.theguardian.com/football/who-scored-blog/2022/aug/10/newcastle-europe-joelinton-bruno-guimaraes-midfield-eddie-howe

 

Quote

The Brazilian pair have been outstanding under Eddie Howe. If they stay fit, Newcastle will keep moving up the table

 

Newcastle may be the richest football club in the game, but they have been relatively quiet in the transfer market this summer. Far from splashing the cash, they have only signed three senior players – bringing in goalkeeper Nick Pope from Burnley for £10m, signing centre-back Sven Botman from Lille for £31.9m, and making Matt Targett’s loan move from Aston Villa permanent.

For the most part, Eddie Howe is going with the same side he picked in the second half of last season. Pope displaced Martin Dubravka between the sticks for their opening game of the season against Nottingham Forest on Saturday but all 10 outfield starters were players who had been at the club last season. Dan Burn proved a superb addition at the heart of the defence in January and he kept his place, with new signing Botman left on the bench until the 90th minute. Considering Newcastle’s flying form in 2022 – only Liverpool, Manchester City and Tottenham have picked up more than their tally of 41 points this year – Howe thinks there is no need to fix something that isn’t broken.

David Squires on … the opening weekend of the Premier League season

 

A key element of Newcastle’s good form this year has been their dynamic Brazilian midfield duo, Joelinton and Bruno Guimarães. Joelinton’s redeployment as a midfielder and subsequent rejuvenation has been a huge success. After joining Newcastle from Hoffenheim as a forward in 2019, the Brazilian struggled as the lead man. He played in all 38 of Newcastle’s league games in his first season but only scored twice.

Fans only saw the best of the 25-year-old when he moved back into midfield. Joelinton is hardly prolific in front of goal – he only scored four goals in the league last season – but his influence on the team has magnified greatly. Since Howe took charge last November, Joelinton has made more tackles (64) than any other player at the club, revelling after his change from goal-shy striker to hard-working central midfielder.

Second on that list for tackles is January arrival Bruno Guimarães, with 47. Newcastle caused quite the stir at the turn of the year when they lured Guimarães to St James’ Park from Lyon. The Brazil international had dominated midfields in Ligue 1 and, with each passing week, the £33.5m that Newcastle spent to secure his services looks more of a bargain.

His all-action approach has helped him slot into the team seamlessly and adjust quickly to the rigours of Premier League football. With Howe favouring a 4-3-3 system, picking Joelinton and Guimarães alongside each other in midfield, they are difficult to break down. If you beat the Joelinton press, then Guimarães is there to rob you of the ball, and vice versa. With a full pre-season behind them, the pair were excellent in Newcastle’s opening 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest. Both featured in our Premier League XI for the opening weekend and that was not a flash in the pan. Since Howe took over, Guimarães has been our highest ranked player in the Newcastle squad, with Joelinton third.

 

 

The Newcastle manager has two workers who are strong in and out of possession. When defending, they do not give opposing midfields a moment’s rest. For a Newcastle side that was so effortlessly bypassed before Howe’s appointment, this has been a huge turnaround. When in possession, they carry the ball forward to help Newcastle swarm teams. They can both ghost past opponents and wriggle their way out of tight situations while beating a midfield press. Guimarães completed five dribbles against Nottingham Forest, with Joelinton completing four.

Newcastle fans are excited about the future. From struggling to stay in the Premier League under Mike Ashley to having a better 2022 record than Arsenal and Chelsea, they have come a long way. Attention is understandably turning towards a potential return to European action.

Of course, the new owners have only had one full window to invest in the squad and they may strengthen further before the end of the month, with Lyon and Brazil attacking midfielder Lucas Paquetá linked with a switch to Newcastle. He would be joining a team with a solid midfield foundation. Newcastle have proven this year that they can rub shoulders with the big six in the Premier League. If Joelinton and Guimarães stay fit, Howe’s side could gatecrash the European places this season.

 

[Memphis]

This is where the semantics come in - like is the “best” player the one who scored or assisted the most, the one who has he highest skill level, or the one who embodied the spirit of the club most notably? People have different definitions of the same word, so you’re going to struggle to find total agreement on that. In terms of impact, Shearer, Beardsley, Lee, all were “better” than Bruno, of course. At least so far.
 

But in terms of overall talent? I don’t think we have ever had a more talented overall player in our club’s esteemed history than Bruno. I don’t say that lightly. There is nothing on the pitch he cannot do at an elite level. We have never had a player who was this good at this many things. We have had flawed geniuses and we have had dogged performers but never a player with the lot. If he stays with us for long enough and leads us back into the top reaches of the table, he will be forever remembered among the icons of the club. 
 

 

[Hovagod]

Just now, Memphis said:

This is where the semantics come in - like is the “best” player the one who scored or assisted the most, the one who has he highest skill level, or the one who embodied the spirit of the club most notably? People have different definitions of the same word, so you’re going to struggle to find total agreement on that. In terms of impact, Shearer, Beardsley, Lee, all were “better” than Bruno, of course. At least so far.
 

But in terms of overall talent? I don’t think we have ever had a more talented overall player in our club’s esteemed history than Bruno. I don’t say that lightly. There is nothing on the pitch he cannot do at an elite level. We have never had a player who was this good at this many things. We have had flawed geniuses and we have had dogged performers but never a player with the lot. If he stays with us for long enough and leads us back into the top reaches of the table, he will be forever remembered among the icons of the club. 
 

 

Yeah, this is it really. You can’t compare across eras because the game changes so much so quickly. But there is nothing Bruno can’t do. He’s like an ultimate modern footballer. 

[kingxlnc]

I do think Shearer is probably the ultimate elite performer we have ever had, but we only got one season out of that version. Bruno is not on that level yet and it is premature to even compare. Potential is not the same as actually performance, Ben Arfa for example perhaps may be the most talented in terms of raw potential and talent. Obviously he had his flaws, too. But Shearer at his peak had sustained proven success, the world after him, leadership, mindset, longevity, the works. 
 

Love Bruno and am excited to see him grow with us but he’s only played 20 or so games so far. He definitely has elite potential but let’s see what level he can take us to first. 

[kingxlnc]

A good way of determining this:

 

do we have or have we had anyone who is capable of or who has won the Ballon D’Or? 
 

That is the measuring stick most of the world uses so why shouldn’t we?

 

We know Owen won it in 2001 (but it is largely accepted he is one of the weakest ones to have won it). 
Keegan won it twice but before his NUFC days.

Shearer finished 3rd in 1996.

 

No one has come close, since. 
 

Do we think Bruno has that potential to make this shortlist one day? 

[Lush Vlad]

No. 

[Guest HTT II]

He’d have to out perform the likes of KDB just to even be considered.

[Paully]

 

[JUICE690]

Lush.

[Coffee_Johnny]

54 minutes ago, kingxlnc said:

A good way of determining this:

 

do we have or have we had anyone who is capable of or who has won the Ballon D’Or? 
 

That is the measuring stick most of the world uses so why shouldn’t we?

 

We know Owen won it in 2001 (but it is largely accepted he is one of the weakest ones to have won it). 
Keegan won it twice but before his NUFC days.

Shearer finished 3rd in 1996.

 

No one has come close, since. 
 

Do we think Bruno has that potential to make this shortlist one day? 

I know it is easy to dazzled by such a star on the rise, especially given the change his signing has had a key part in producing, but it seems within his reach. He’d have to go and do it at the very highest level, which (perhaps unfortunately for us …) I could see him doing. He’s not looked outclassed/found out by any opponents as yet (that I can recall) during the first half season in one of the, if not the, toughest league(s) in the world. 

[Conjo]

That heat map is ridiculous

[snakzz]

Best player I have seen in an Newcastle suit since Shearer. 

[54]

 

[Yorkie]

Incredible player. Late to yesterday's debate but he's undoubtedly the best I've ever seen in the middle of the park for us (so '98 onwards). It isn't even close, either; he's truly exceptional. Only Ben Arfa gets close in terms of natural ability but he was a winger. 

[Hanshithispantz]

20 minutes ago, 54 said:

 

OkieHope

[MrRaspberryJam]

His passing technique is weird in an oddly satisfying way: he sort of stabs it at it and it doesn't look that pretty on the eye but it's always inch perfect. No idea how we managed to pull this deal off. If you knew a player of his caliber was available for £30m-£40m in January you'd have thought there'd have been a boat load of teams trying to snap him up.  

[Wilson]

2 hours ago, Paully said:

 

 

Rice for me like

[Wilson]

11 minutes ago, Hanshithispantz said:

OkieHope

 

Don't let a couple of flicks over players' heads cloud your judgement mind. 

 

 

Edited August 10, 2022 by Wilson

[LionOfGosforth]

Whenever we're in the fortunate position to have a player of this calibre, it's natural to want to compare him to quality midfielders of the past. To be honest, he doesn't really play like anyone i've had the privilege to watch in our colours. In my lifetime, only Gazza and Rob Lee compare to this guy really and he doesn't directly play like either one, though he possesses similar traits of both players.

 

He has the ability to tackle, intercept, dictate play, like Rob Lee could in another era. He also has that rare quality of being able to just grab a game by the scruff of the neck and drive us forward and create and even score, like Gazza in his prime, though we've yet to see him produce Gazza's amazing dribbling and artistry from dead balls and set pieces..

 

He's incredible to watch. I feel like the "top" teams really missed something as for me, he'd walk into most midfields out there. He's probably already close to tripled in value, given the ease with which he's adjusted to PL football. Feel like he could play and dominate in any league as his natural game defies and flourishes regardless of tactics and systems. A truly elite player and much much better than I even thought he was or could be.