Manchester United initiates talks with Newcastle captain, available for £69 million - cheaper than Tonali and offers the best value.

According to British media reports, Manchester United has held preliminary discussions with the agent team of Newcastle United captain Bruno Guimarães regarding a potential summer transfer. The 28-year-old Brazilian international is considered capable of replacing Casemiro, and the 34-year-old "Fat Tiger" reportedly agrees with this assessment.

During the discussions, both Manchester United and Guimarães showed interest in the deal, and negotiations proceeded smoothly. Guimarães still has two years left on his contract, and his transfer fee is estimated to be around £69 million (€80 million). Among the many candidate players, this represents the best value. For comparison, his Newcastle teammate Sandro Tonali is rumored to have a price tag of £100 million!

However, the local "Chronicle" denies rumors of Manchester United engaging in deep negotiations with Guimarães and claims that Newcastle has begun preliminary talks with his agent regarding a new contract extension. Additionally, Manchester United is not the only club interested in Guimarães; Real Madrid is also reportedly admirers of him.

Brazil's current head coach, former Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti, previously recommended Guimarães as a successor to Modrić and Toni Kroos. However, in the January 2022 winter transfer window, Newcastle抢先 secured Guimarães from Lyon in Ligue 1 for a £40 million transfer fee. At St James' Park, Guimarães has made 189 appearances, scoring 31 goals, and has become the team's captain.

But now Newcastle faces the risk of key players leaving. They suffered a heavy 2-7 defeat to Barcelona in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. In the Premier League, Eddie Howe's team is only in 9th place, trailing Liverpool in 5th place by 7 points. With only 8 games remaining, securing a Champions League spot for next season is almost impossible. Therefore, key Newcastle players like Guimarães, Tonali, Anthony Gordon, Lewis Hall, and Tino Livramento are all considered potential departures.

Last summer, Newcastle was forced to sell Isak to Liverpool for a British transfer record of £130 million. Now they are determined not to let their core players leave again, even if they cannot play in the Champions League; securing European qualification is key to achieving this goal.

It is no secret that Manchester United needs to rebuild its midfield this summer. Within the club, many believe Nottingham Forest's Anderson should be the priority signing.

Although Forest has struggled to avoid relegation this season, on a personal performance level, the 23-year-old Anderson has been outstanding. Barring injuries or other unforeseen circumstances, he is certain to secure a place in the England squad for the upcoming World Cup.

Anderson's transfer fee is expected to be at least £80 million. Manchester United is willing to pay this amount to sign him and fill the gap left by Casemiro's departure.

However, Manchester United's desire to acquire Anderson faces a significant obstacle—Manchester City. Multiple sources have confirmed to BBC that Manchester City is clearly the strongest contender to sign Anderson at the end of this season. Additionally, Bayern Munich is also interested in him.

Manchester United will not abandon its interest. Although Sir Jim Ratcliffe is reluctant to engage in a bidding war with the city rival over player salaries, the club is still willing to make significant efforts to secure Anderson.

Insiders at Manchester United insist that last summer, Šeško chose to join the Red Devils instead of Arsenal or Newcastle, demonstrating the club's appeal.

Of course, this is somewhat overstated; Šeško simply chose Manchester United over Newcastle, while Arsenal independently opted to sign Jekalaiš. The Red Devils themselves are aware of this and will not place all their hopes on Anderson.

Therefore, Manchester United's contacts with Guimarães and Tonali are genuine. Transfer expert Ben Jacobs states that the agents of Tonali and Guimarães are competing against each other for transfers. Both players know that if one leaves, the other cannot. Thus, they are each striving to complete a potential transfer before the other.