Bruno Guimaraes to Arsenal poses big question that Mikel Arteta could spend millions correcting

Bruno Guimaraes' potential move to Arsenal is raising question marks over the club's midfield strategy

Arsenal’s interest in Bruno Guimaraes is no secret; it’s been present for more than six years. The Gunners have supposedly been making informal moves for the Brazilian, while Newcastle United maintain that he is not for sale under any circumstances.

That may change, money talks, and it did last summer with Alexander Isak. While any move would be expected to be for considerably less, overall, the reception to Arsenal’s interest has been overwhelmingly positive, with a belief that the midfielder would add much-needed quality and depth to the midfield as Mikel Arteta aims to successfully defend the Premier League title.

However, the scrutinisers of the deal have one solid argument to throw into the ring: his age. Now 28, turning 29 in November (no, I won’t repeat the joke again), Guimaraes is hardly a youngster in the sport as he was when Arsenal were first interested in 2020.

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Not only are there concerns about investing in a soon-to-be 29-year-old, but those utterly convinced by Guimaraes have been encouraged to look to the existing midfielders. Christian Norgaard, 32, Mikel Merino, 30, Declan Rice, 27, Martin Odegaard, 27, Eberechi Eze, 27 and Martin Zubimendi, 27.

Make no mistake, this was the plan, football.london understands. Arsenal identified several years ago that investing in younger players who would hit their prime at similar times would be beneficial, and their Premier League title was the ultimate vindication.

However, it is fair to say that adding another mid-to-late-20s player to that group does mean that, in the near future, investment in the midfield will be required again to refresh the options.

No doubt, this is a fair point, but the more success Arsenal have, the more they will have to reinvest. Myles Lewis-Skelly and Max Dowman are viewed as two excellent young talents at the club, too, both seen as potential starting options in the middle third.

As Arsenal have needs for the present, Guimaraes’ arrival would remedy exactly that and, in turn, help the future too. This Arsenal recruitment group have earned faith and for now, it would be smart to trust the strategy.

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