Newcastle United's new head coach Matthias Jaissle has confirmed that the decision surrounding captain Bruno Guimaraes' departure had already been finalized by the time he took charge at St James' Park. The Brazilian midfielder is on the verge of completing a £75m transfer to Arsenal, with the two clubs having recently broken through a lengthy stalemate in negotiations.
Jaissle, appointed as Eddie Howe's successor this summer, revealed that he only had a brief encounter with Guimaraes during Newcastle's training camp in Spain earlier this week. Despite the short interaction, the 28-year-old later gave an emotional send-off to his teammates and staff before his switch to Arsenal was formalized.
"I met him quickly, but the decision was already made," Jaissle told reporters in his first press conference as Newcastle boss. "It was a nice conversation. He's a fantastic player and a great human being. It's tough but for him now it's the next challenge and we need to deal with it at a later stage. We trust the players who are here already, but we will also see some changes."
Guimaraes' anticipated move represents the fourth major departure from Newcastle's squad within roughly a year. Winger Anthony Gordon left for Barcelona, while Sandro Tonali switched to Tottenham Hotspur earlier in this transfer window. Striker Alexander Isak had already completed a move to Liverpool the previous summer.
Former Newcastle striker and club legend Alan Shearer offered his support to Jaissle in a recent BBC Sport column, though he cautioned that the upcoming campaign could prove difficult, describing potential