Newcastle United captain Bruno Guimaraes set a Premier League club record last month.
The Brazilian’s resilience and reliability have made him one of Newcastle’s most lauded players over the past few seasons as he’s established himself as one of the best midfielders in the English top flight.
Guimaraes also cemented himself in the club’s history by leading Newcastle to a first domestic trophy in 70 years as he lifted the Carabao Cup at Wembley Stadium as captain back in March.
The midfielder was one of Eddie Howe’s first signings as Newcastle head coach back in January 2022. Since then, Guimaraes has gone on to make 156 appearances for the club, scoring 23 goals.
After initially having to be patient to make an impact in the side, Guimaraes established himself in Newcastle’s starting line-up at the back end of the 2021/22 season and hasn’t looked back since.
“I certainly trust him implicitly,” Howe said. “He's a player that from the moment he's signed, he turned up sort of relatively unknown to everybody, but the way he immersed himself into the Newcastle culture, I think it's been the most impressive thing.
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“I think he was emotionally engaged from minute one and you could see that then when he started to play and started to express himself. He was a Geordie. He's an adopted Geordie. He represented everything that the supporters want to see.
“He's got that creative flair, the work rate, the heart, the courage. He's got so many qualities. Giving the responsibility of captain was an important moment for him.
“I think he was ready for it. I think he's taken to it really well. But most importantly, I think it's helped his game, it's taken his game on to another level.
“That responsibility can do one of two things to you. But it's definitely had a positive effect on Bruno, and we love having him with us.”
Bruno Guimaraes concern ahead of NUFC v Wolves
In addition to playing 67 consecutive Premier League matches for Newcastle, Guimaraes has also been a regular starter for Brazil.
The 27-year-old played two full 90 minutes for Brazil during the international break, scoring in a 3-0 win over Chile last week before starting the 1-0 defeat in Bolivia on Wednesday morning.
The match at high altitude, paired with the long travel distance, jet-lag and only returning to training on Friday is something Newcastle and Guimaraes will have to assess heading into a gruelling run of fixtures.
The Magpies play seven games over the next 23 days across the Premier League, Champions League and Carabao Cup.
And Howe acknowledged a potential issue for Guimaraes heading into it.
"Yeah, definitely,” Howe said when said if Guimaraes’ international break comes into mind when selecting his team to face Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday (3pm kick-off). “We've had discussions with Bruno and we'll continue to have discussions with Bruno to see how he feels.
“Any player that enters the pitch, we have to be confident, and he has to be confident that he can deliver his best for the team. And I know Bruno will share that view with us, so we'll wait and see.”
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