How Bruno Guimaraes compares to Arsenal's current midfielders as £75m transfer confirmed

Even Premier League champions can upgrade their starting XI, and reigning title holders Arsenal have certainly done so, thanks to the £75m acquisition of Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle United.

Arsenal announced Guimaraes's transfer on Saturday, ending a semi-protracted saga that had initially seen Newcastle slap a not-for-sale sign on the Brazil international, before the player indicated his strong desire to make the move to North London.

Signing a four-year contract with the option of a fifth, Guimaraes will transform from foe to friend in the eyes of Declan Rice, while also linking arms with Mikel Merino, Martin Zubimendi and Martin Odegaard in the Gunners midfield.

But just how do Mikel Arteta's engine-room enforcers stack up? Here, Sports Mole carries out a statistical analysis into how Guimaraes compares to his new teammates, using numbers from the 2025-26 Premier League season.

Bruno Guimaraes Arsenal comparison: Goalscoring

Before delving into the deeper analysis, minutes must be taken into account: neither Odegaard nor Merino were mainstays in the Arsenal team last season due to injuries, Guimaraes clocked 2,455 minutes for Newcastle, while Rice and Zubimendi played over 3,000 each for the champions.

However, Rice and Zubimendi combined managed Guimaraes's total goals last season, as the Brazilian netted nine for the Magpies, compared to four for the Englishman and five for the Spaniard.

Eight of Guimaraes's nine goals came at St James' Park, while four of Zubimendi's five top-flight strikes were scored at the Emirates, but interestingly, three of Rice's four efforts came away from home.

Guimaraes's unmatched goals total is no surprise given he also led the way in shots (36) and shots on target (23), while also boasting a significantly superior shots-on-target ratio (63.9%) and conversion rate (21.4%).

From existing Arsenal midfielders, Merino's shot accuracy is the closest to Guimaraes's at 50%, and at the other end of the spectrum, Odegaard's conversion rate read a measly 4.6%.

Bruno Guimaraes Arsenal comparison: Playmaking

As well as firing in nine Premier League goals during his final Newcastle campaign, Guimaraes's five assists meant that he also registered the most total involvements of any Magpies player in the 2025-26 top-flight campaign with 14.

Guimaraes bested Merino (3) and Zubimendi (1) for assists while drawing level with Rice, but despite playing over 1,000 fewer minutes, Odegaard set up one more goal than his South American colleague.

However, the Norwegian still generated fewer chances for his teammates with 39 key passes throughout the Premier League season, compared to Guimaraes's 45.

Rice produced the most opportunities by far, though, creating 63 chances in the 2025-26 Premier League, owing largely to his responsibilities as corner and free-kick taker.

Bruno Guimaraes Arsenal comparison: Passing/possession

Playing in a less possession-dominant team than Arteta's Arsenal, Guimaraes's numbers in the passing/possession category are naturally lower, in a section dominated by Declan.

The only notable categories where Guimaraes outgunned his four Gunners colleagues are long-pass percentage - completing 60.5% of such balls - and take-ons completed, managing 18 overall.

However, Guimaraes's take-on success rate is still inferior to that of Rice, who triumphed 50% of the time in such scenarios and is also by far and away the leader in almost every passing category.

Odegaard leads the way for crossing accuracy (27.3%) and through balls (19), while neither Zubimendi nor Merino are sitting at the top of the tree in any category.

Bruno Guimaraes Arsenal comparison: Defending

Whether Guimaraes operates as a six or an eight for Arsenal is still the subject of intense debate, but Arteta would have no qualms with throwing the Brazilian into the former role if the situation demanded it.

Indeed, none of Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice or Merino can match Guimaraes in a duelling sense, as the ex-Newcastle man contested a category-leading 334 battles last season and won an unmatched 168; Zubimendi is second on the list at 151.

Also perpetually hailed for his ability to win free kicks - enhancing Arsenal's set-piece danger even more - Guimaraes was fouled a staggering 75 times in the 2025-26 Premier League, more than all four Gunners (55) combined.

However, Guimaraes did collect the most bookings of the quintet last season with six, while also registering the worst aerial duel win rate at 37.1%.