Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta stressed shortly after the Gunners secured the Premier League crown that the club had to show ambition to maintain its progress, and that determination has been demonstrated by the decision to pursue Newcastle skipper Bruno Guimaraes.
Last season, Arsenal claimed their first league championship in 22 years and advanced to the Champions League final, where Paris St-Germain defeated them.
Once the campaign had ended and the celebrations for their latest trophy were over, however, Arteta immediately began considering how to take Arsenal to a “new level”.
With Brazilian midfielder Guimaraes expected to feature in a reshaped Arsenal side, the club is confident he can help deliver that transformation.
Arteta has consistently favored players who understand the Premier League and have already proved capable of handling football at the highest standard.
Bringing in the 28-year-old would move the club closer to its goal of assembling one of the strongest midfields in world football.
Several factors explain why Arteta identified Guimaraes as the player who could prepare Arsenal to compete successfully across multiple competitions.
Injuries caused major difficulties for the Gunners last season, and despite spending £250m during the previous summer transfer window, durability has remained an important consideration in their recruitment strategy.
Arsenal contested 63 matches across all competitions last season and have reorganized their medical department ahead of the upcoming campaign.
Christian Norgaard, who is expected to join Everton, arrived last summer but struggled to gain Arteta’s confidence, making only seven league appearances and starting once.
That situation placed a considerable workload on Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice, with Zubimendi eventually losing his place as the physical demands caught up with him during the closing stages of the season.
Rice is returning from a World Cup campaign in which he helped England reach the semi-finals, following a club season where he recorded more minutes than any other Arsenal outfield player.
The midfielder has been managing a hamstring problem, although a period of recovery should have improved his condition. Adding Guimaraes would allow Arteta to rotate his lineup without significantly weakening it, while also increasing the midfield’s overall potential.
Arteta expects high intensity during training, and Guimaraes would enter a midfield group featuring Rice, Zubimendi, captain Martin Odegaard, Eberechi Eze, Mikel Merino, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, creating strong competition for places.
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