Bruno Guimaraes named in crazy Newcastle United ‘bid’ for £55m Leeds transfer after ‘lie’ claim

While Newcastle have been credited with an interest in the former Leeds United forward, it won’t take an expert to know that the latest reports from Spain are wide of the mark.

Transfer insider Gerard Romero has claimed The Magpies have made a cash plus player offer for Raphinha of £25.61million plus midfielder Bruno Guimaraes on Monday.

The Gazette understands Newcastle have no intention to sell Guimaraes this summer, a player who they value at around £100million. The Magpies have been in talks regarding a new deal for Guimaraes, which is viewed as a ‘priority’.

Raphinha only signed for Barcelona from Leeds last summer for £55million and has since scored 10 goals in 50 appearances. Romero previously claimed that Newcastle made a ‘verbal proposal’ for Raphinha totalling around £60million.

But the Brazil international hit back at further reports from Joaquim Piera suggesting he had given the ‘okay’ for Barcelona to consider offers for him.

He responded to the story on Instagram, commenting: “LIE. The person who said this is beyond a liar and uninformed.”

The player’s comment was then deleted, prompting him to post: “OK, why did you delete my comment? LIE, once again, this ‘OK’ is LIE And whoever said that is a LIAR, MISINFORMED AND UNPROFESSIONAL. If my comment is deleted, I will post it on my Instagram.”

Raphinha scored 17 times in 65 Premier League matches for Leeds United and has also attracted interest from the likes of Arsenal.