Bruno Guimaraes teases Newcastle United update that will excite fans ahead of pre-season opener

Guimaraes played a key role in Newcastle finishing fourth in the Premier League last season and qualifying for the Champions League. Following the end of The Magpies’ season, the 25-year-old joined up with the Brazil national team alongside club team-mate Joelinton.

He featured in the friendly matches against Guinea and Senegal played in Spain and Portugal respectively before heading over to Brazil with his family. Due to Guimaraes’ international commitments, he was provided extra time to recover following the Newcastle first-team’s return to pre-season training on Sunday.

Guimaraes teased he was flying back to Newcastle on social media by posting a Tweet including aeroplane emojis.

He later confirmed via Instagram as he shared a wedding photo taken over the summer showing himself and his wife Ana in front of the iconic Christ The Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro along with the caption: “Time to say goodbye to our city and get back to work...with that feeling of gratitude for everything we experience.”

Guimaraes’ return is a timely one with Newcastle playing their first pre-season friendly at Gateshead on Saturday (12:30pm kick-off). Given the quick turnaround following his return from England, the midfielder may not be involved in the match.

Guimaraes also sat out the behind closed doors friendly against Gateshead that opened United’s pre-season campaign last season.

He has been in talks regarding a new deal at St James’ Park since the back end of the 2022-23 campaign with his current deal set to expire in 2026. The Brazilian joined Newcastle from Ligue 1 side Lyon for £40million including add-ons in January 2022.

Speaking about making the move, Guimaraes told the Charla Podcast: “I was scared to go, but it was an offer I couldn’t refuse, and my dream was to play in the Premier League.

“I knew about the new owners of the club (following a 2021 takeover). I knew that everything was changing. I knew I was going to play with [Kieran] Trippier – he was a big name.

“I said ‘you know what? I’m going up, I’m going to take a risk’. And the following year, we went to a [Carabao Cup] final, we went to the Champions League.”