Since making the switch from French outfit Lyon in January 2022, the midfielder has helped the Magpies transform from struggling at the foot of the division to serious challengers in the Champions League.

Guimaraes has continued to be a talismanic figure in Newcastle's engine room this term, scoring six goals and providing six assists in 34 Premier League appearances.

The 26-year-old also possesses immense international pedigree, regularly forming part of Brazil's first-choice midfield alongside West Ham United's Lucas Paqueta.

After finding net in the 4-1 victory over Championship-bound Burnley on Saturday, Guimaraes has now scored three goals in his last five Premier League appearances for Eddie Howe's Europe chasers.

Arsenal willing to sell academy players?

According to Football Insider, Arsenal could be open to selling Emile Smith Rowe, Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson this summer in order to fund incomings.

The report claims that Mikel Arteta's side might be forced to offload their academy starlets in order to meet the limited-time release clause of Newcastle's Guimaraes.

As revealed earlier this month, the Brazilian will be available for £100m until the end of June, after which the Magpies will be in charge of a transfer fee for the player.

The sales of Smith Rowe, Nketiah and Nelson would count as pure profit in Arsenal's financial accounts due to their homegrown status following their graduations from the club's academy.

Manchester United and Manchester City have also been credited with an interest in Guimaraes, meaning that the Gunners face stiff competition for the player's services this summer.

Smith Rowe's waning influence

In the early days of Arteta's reign at the Emirates, Smith Rowe was a crucial first-team player alongside teammate and friend Bukayo Saka.

However, the arrival of Martin Odegaard onto the North London scene has seen the 23-year-old fall down the pecking order in the engine room significantly.

Smith Rowe has made 12 Premier League appearances for the title chasers in 2023-24 - starting on just three occasions - failing to come off the bench in Arsenal's last four top-flight contests.

The three-time England international has not been included in an England squad in over two years, with the midfielder requiring regular action in order to force his way back into Gareth Southgate's thinking ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

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