The summer window is only a few weeks old, but it already has the feel of one of those transfer sagas that runs and runs. Arsenal are back in the market as reigning Premier League champions, and two names are dominating every conversation at the Emirates right now: Bruno Guimaraes and Morgan Rogers. Add in a growing list of confirmed deals across the division, and this is shaping up to be one of the busiest windows in years.
Here’s everything worth knowing in the latest transfer news, updated as the picture develops.
Bruno Guimaraes Has Told Newcastle He Wants Out
The headline story of the week comes out of Newcastle, where captain Bruno Guimaraes has informed the club directly that he wants to leave for Arsenal. Newcastle are not commenting publicly on the situation, and Sky Sports News understands Arsenal have made no formal contact with the club over the midfielder’s availability, though the conditions of a possible deal have already been explored through intermediaries.
The timing is no coincidence. Guimaraes only turned his full attention to his club future once Brazil’s World Cup run ended, and he is said to be growing increasingly open to a move to Arsenal, with two years left on his Newcastle contract. Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta is now expected to step up talks with the Brazilian’s camp after preliminary discussions and a verbal offer were already put on the table.
That opening approach didn’t get far. David Ornstein has confirmed Guimaraes has handed in a formal transfer request, with Arsenal understood to be willing to pay around £60m for the 28-year-old, though there has been no direct club-to-club contact yet. Newcastle, for their part, aren’t rolling over. The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards has been blunt about it, suggesting the noise around “verbal offers” is largely agent chatter designed to soften Newcastle up rather than a genuine negotiation.
There’s context to Newcastle’s resistance too. The club has already lost Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon this summer, and manager Eddie Howe will be desperate to avoid a repeat of last year’s Alexander Isak saga, which ended with the striker forcing through a £130m move to Liverpool after going on strike. Even so, the roughly £169m banked from selling Gordon and Tonali has given Newcastle far more breathing room on spending rules than they had a year ago.
Where does the money side stand? Reports suggest Arsenal’s opening £44.5m bid was rejected, while Newcastle are said to want closer to £100m for their captain — though Arsenal reportedly believe an offer in the region of £65m could eventually get a deal over the line. On the personal terms front, things are moving quicker. Transfer insider Nicolo Schira reports Guimaraes has already agreed a contract with Arsenal running until 2031, with Mikel Arteta’s side pushing hard to get the transfer completed.
Expect this one to run for a while yet. Newcastle’s official line remains defiant, but a player publicly asking to leave rarely stays put for long once the message has been delivered.
Arsenal’s Double Deal: Where Morgan Rogers Fits In
Guimaraes isn’t the only priority. Arsenal are working just as hard on Aston Villa’s Morgan Rogers, and the two deals are increasingly being talked about as a package. FootballTransfers reported this week that Rogers is “very, very close” to agreeing personal terms with Arsenal, putting Arteta’s side in a strong position to land the England international alongside Guimaraes.
Villa, though, are not going to make this cheap. The Telegraph reports Villa have told suitors that Rogers won’t be sold for anything less than £130m, a fee that would break the British transfer record currently held by Liverpool’s £125m purchase of Isak from Newcastle. Part of that valuation comes down to comparisons: Villa believe Rogers is worth more than Elliot Anderson, who moved to Manchester City for £116m, pointing to his extra England caps and consistent performances on the European stage. There’s also a financial wrinkle, Middlesbrough hold a 20 percent sell-on clause from his £15m move in 2024, which pushes Villa’s asking price even higher to protect their net return.
Arsenal aren’t the only club circling, either. Chelsea remain firm admirers of Rogers through their director of recruitment Joe Shields, while Manchester City have made clear they’d welcome the chance to bring their former academy graduate back to the Etihad, and both Manchester United and Liverpool are said to be monitoring the situation. Still, Arsenal are widely viewed as the club leading the race, with Arteta seeing Rogers as a long-term left-sided attacking option rather than a No 10.
Fabrizio Romano has been consistent on this one for weeks. He’s described Rogers as Arsenal’s “number one, two and three target” and says the deal is “absolutely on” from the player’s side, even if the club-to-club negotiation over the fee will take longer to resolve. To fund a deal of that size, Arsenal appear to be clearing space in attack, Leandro Trossard has already agreed personal terms with Besiktas, and both Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus are said to be available for the right offer.
Done Deals: Who’s Already Signed Where
While Arsenal chase their two headline targets, plenty of business has already been completed elsewhere in the Premier League.
- Barcelona have pulled off one of the summer’s more eye-catching moves, completing the signing of Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon.
- Chelsea have been the busiest of the lot, bringing in Geovany Quenda, Denner, Dastan Satpaev, Emmanuel Emegha and Marco Palestra, while also selling Marc Cucurella to Real Madrid in a deal that surprised most observers given his links to Atletico Madrid.
- Liverpool have strengthened at the back, agreeing a deal for Stade Rennais centre-back Jeremy Jacquet and hijacking Newcastle’s move for Osasuna winger Victor Munoz.
- Manchester City have gone for youth, signing highly rated prospect Mathys Detourbet from sister club Troyes.
- Arsenal, meanwhile, have been tidying up the fringes of their squad, selling Jakub Kiwior to FC Porto and Karl Hein to Werder Bremen, while confirming Piero Hincapie’s permanent transfer for around €52m after his loan spell paid off.
- Tottenham have been shrewd in the free-agent market, bringing in Marcos Senesi on a free transfer after his release from Bournemouth, alongside Andy Robertson’s free move from Liverpool.
- Elsewhere, Brentford have added young Austrian defender Jannik Schuster from RB Salzburg, and Ipswich Town have made permanent the loan deals of Chuba Akpom and Cedric Kipre.
It’s worth remembering the window doesn’t close until deadline day, which falls on Tuesday, September 1, with clubs given a two-hour grace period after 11pm to file paperwork on deals agreed before the deadline.
The Hottest Targets Still in Play
Beyond Guimaraes and Rogers, a handful of names keep coming up across multiple reports as the players most likely to move before the window shuts:
- Elliot Anderson and Adam Wharton were both floated early in the window as top English targets before the market shifted its focus toward Rogers and Guimaraes.
- Bradley Barcola and Christos Tzolis remain on Arsenal’s radar as alternative attacking options should the Rogers deal stall, alongside Julian Alvarez, whose move remains active but is currently taking a back seat to a possible return to Barcelona.
- El Bilal Toure has emerged as a cut-price attacking option, with Aston Villa monitoring the Atalanta forward as Unai Emery looks for low-cost attacking depth ahead of a Champions League campaign.
- Villa are also weighing up alternatives in case Rogers does leave, with Harry Wilson, available as a free agent after his standout Fulham season, and Newcastle’s Harvey Barnes among the names on Emery’s list.
What to Watch Next
The next fortnight should tell us a lot. Newcastle’s stance on Guimaraes is being tested daily, and once a captain formally requests to leave, clubs rarely manage to keep the relationship functional for long. On the Rogers front, the gap between Arsenal’s valuation and Villa’s £130m demand is still wide, but with personal terms reportedly close, it may come down to who blinks first on the fee.
Expect plenty more twists before deadline day. This page will be updated as the picture becomes clearer.
