Dietmar Hamann says Bruno Guimaraes can have his pick of clubs if he were to leave Newcastle United with one caveat
There was a time when you couldn't pick up a paper (I mean, click a link to a football news site) without seeing a story linking Bruno Guimaraes with an exit from Newcastle United.
Ever since the Brazilian midfielder arrived on Tyneside four years ago and started to put in the performances that have made him such a prominent figure amongst the Newcastle fans, the mainstream, big-six-biased media have been adamant that he's simply too good to be at lowly Newcastle.
Story after story would surface suggesting that Bruno Guimaraes would leave in the next transfer window with Arsenal, Manchester City, Real Madrid and Barcelona often mentioned as possible destinations.
Bruno himself had even spoken about the idea of playing for Real Madrid or Barcelona in the early days of his Newcastle career, so the stories didn't seem too far-fetched.
Didi Hamann thinks Bruno Guimaraes is good enough to walk into any Champions League team
Now, though, those rumours have all but gone away as it's clear that Bruno Guimaraes is in love with Newcastle United. He's now the team captain, he's adored by everyone and even calls his two sons 'Brazilian Geordies'.
However, nothing lasts forever and speaking to CasinoBeats (via The Chronicle), former Newcastle and Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamann has said that were Bruno to leave, he could have his pick of clubs, but goes on to say that he doesn't think that will happen for a while.
"Without a question, the best players want to play in the Champions League. Money is important too but it’s not the deciding factor. He will be getting paid well up in the North East.
"But the Champions League is the trophy along with the World Cup that all players want to win. If you’re not in the Champions League, you can’t win it, and every single Champions League club in England would be interested in Bruno Guimaraes if he decides that he can see himself elsewhere. The two Spanish giants would be interested too.
"Before he left, Xabi Alonso made it clear that Real Madrid need a midfielder who can be a ball-winner, even though they’ve got Tchouameni and Camavinga there. I thought they were the two best players in their position but obviously things are not really working out for them.
"I think Bruno can pretty much pick his club depending on how much Newcastle would want for him but he seems to be very settled in the North East.
"I wouldn’t be surprised if he plays at least one more season or even a couple more seasons at Newcastle even if they don’t get into the Champions League."
Only a drastic shift in mood is likely to force Bruno Guimaraes to leave Newcastle in the near future
The rage was building when reading Hamann's piece, initially, but he saved it at the end by suggesting that he feels Bruno will stick around even if the Mags miss out on the Champions League this season.
We said yesterday that we could see Bruno seeing out his career at Newcastle, and while we do concede that's probably a bit fanciful on our part, we expect he'll spend the rest of his peak years with us.
Unless something goes drastically wrong, that is. If the form drops off a cliff or Eddie Howe leaves, things may change, but as things stand, we don't see him entertaining the idea of leaving.
