Bruno Guimaraes has six goal involvements this season, delivering three goals and three assists.
His recent form in the final third has played a key role in recent home wins over Fulham and Nottingham Forest, not only scoring in both but arriving at the right time to secure a 90th-minute victory last Saturday.
Having previously played as a deep-lying No.6 at Newcastle, Bruno now operates in that right-sided No.8 role that gives him the freedom to get forward, and it’s certainly paying dividends!
His position has been tweaked slightly, but it’s no accident that the skipper has been scoring more, with Bruno revealing that Eddie Howe and Newcastle coaches have been asking him to get in the box more:
> _“I have to be in the box more. Sometimes I miss easy goals, to be fair. And Fulham was a good proof that I can affect the team in that way._
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> _“It was my 150th start for the club in the Premier League and I was pleased to score in that opportunity._
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> _“The staff have asked me to be more in the box, to help in there, and I was there in a good place to score an important goal for us.”_
Captain’s message ahead of cup clash
If anyone wondered if we’d rotate heavily or turn up with focus on other competitions, you just need to look at Bruno’s pre-match comments to see how we are approaching tonight’s last 16 clash with Spurs.
Bruno wants to make it “two in two” when it comes to Carabao Cup trophies on Tyneside, insisting this is a “big opportunity” to make the quarter final that we do not want to miss in front of a packed out St James’ Park:
> _“We went 70 years without a win, but we can make it two in two. It’s a big possibility, a big opportunity, so we don’t want to miss it._
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> _“It’s going to be a big game for us and we hope we’re going to be ready for taking advantage in the game._
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> _“It’s a big moment, and even more because we won last season. We want to do it again, keep making history, against a great and very focused team.”_
Victory tonight and we’re two games away from Wembley…again! Hopefully another Bruno goal and big home win awaits.