Stiller, Kone, Danilo, Camara – how can Newcastle replace Guimaraes?

Newcastle United are being paid £75million for Bruno Guimaraes but they stand to lose a lot when the Brazil midfielder completes his transfer to Arsenal.

Guimaraes has been the poster boy for Newcastle’s rise under the Saudi Arabia-backed Public Investment Fund (PIF) since arriving from French side Lyon for €50million (£42.9m/$57.8m at the current rates), including add-ons, in January 2022.

On the pitch, he played starring roles in their two Champions League campaigns and their 2025 Carabao Cup final win, frequently wearing the captain’s armband. Across the past two Premier League seasons, no Newcastle player attempted more passes, created more chances or won more fouls. Only Alexander Isak (23) and Harvey Barnes (16) scored more goals than his 14, and only Jacob Murphy (14) assisted more than his 11.

Making up for Guimaraes’ output and impact will undoubtedly be an aggregate effort rather than one out, one in.

Newcastle sources, speaking anonymously to protect relationships, have also indicated that the club might go after more experience rather than replacing the 28-year-old with another player aged 20 or under, following the central-midfield arrivals of Aladji Bamba and Sean Steur, aged 20 and 18 respectively, this summer.

The Athletic breaks down some of the options they could pursue…

Who’s been linked?

In the latest Transfer DealSheet from August 4, my colleague George Caulkin reported that Newcastle have scouted Porto’s Victor Froholdt and Angelo Stiller of Stuttgart. Newcastle are also considering Marseille’s Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg as an experienced option in midfield.

Froholdt would add youth rather than experience, though his attributes make him a promising potential fit. The 20-year-old, already a full Denmark international, is a willing receiver in congested spaces and his 6ft 1in (187cm) frame allows him to make long strides to carry the ball beyond players over longer distances.

Out of possession, Froholdt’s running power helps him defend transitions, and he is suited to the high-intensity, counterpressing system that new Newcastle head coach Matthias Jaissle has employed at previous clubs.

Froholdt has issues in his defensive positioning, though, and occasionally fails to track runners on his blindside. That and incisive passing in the final third are areas to improve on.

Stiller provides a very different profile to Froholdt.

As his player dashboard from 2025-26 shows, the 25-year-old was a progressive passer who helped Stuttgart move through the thirds. Stiller’s 16.1 lines broken per 100 pass attempts and 34 passes that broke two lines of pressure ranked third among central and holding midfielders (minimum 900 minutes played).

Passes such as the one below, against Werder Bremen in April, provide an idea of how Stiller can unlock defences.

He collects the ball in between his centre-backs and strides forward before bypassing two lines of opposition pressure with a pass to striker Deniz Undav.

Stiller is also an excellent passer in congested areas when further up the pitch, as this through ball against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Europa League shows.

His set-piece deliveries have helped create plenty of chances for Stuttgart, too.

The nine-time Germany international clocked about a third of his league minutes last season in central midfield but is at his best as a deep-lying playmaker. Stiller is not front-footed defensively, ranking in the bottom 20 per cent of Bundesliga midfielders for tackle attempts, which means pairing him with an aggressive ball-winner would bring the best out of him.

How well he’d do when afforded less space than he gets in the Bundesliga is a question, too.

The experienced options

Roma’s Manu Kone attracted plenty of attention during the recent World Cup, often holding France’s midfield together to allow their front four to flourish. The 25-year-old uses his body to shield the ball similarly to Guimaraes, with his 1.9 fouls won per 90 minutes ranking ninth among Serie A central and holding midfielders last season.

For club and country, Kone has been an orchestrator from deeper in midfield with limited impact in the final third. He is bold when carrying the ball, and while he prefers to keep things simple when passing in midfield, only nine Serie A midfielders managed more line-breaking passes in the final third than his 48. There is plenty to Kone’s game, as his playstyle wheel below shows.

Kone has the pace, physicality and intelligence to be effective as a man-marker and in defending large spaces and transitions.

Botafogo midfielder Danilo is another interesting option.

Guimaraes’ fellow Brazil international has Premier League experience, making 50 appearances for Nottingham Forest in an injury-ridden spell between 2022 and 2025.

In 29 league games in 2022-23, his most injury-free season for Forest, Danilo played in a double pivot and as a more advanced midfielder. The now 25-year-old struggled with progressing play, often taking risks that did not come off, but was excellent at disrupting the opposition, ranking fourth among midfielders for interceptions with 1.9 per 90.

At Botafogo over the past year, he has flipped that script, turning into an attack-minded ‘No 8’ (box-to-box midfielder), scoring seven goals in 14 league matches in 2026. Danilo is more composed on the ball and has improved in finding space between the lines to get powerful shots away.

His passing from the half-spaces with his stronger left foot has improved too, as the examples below show.

Who does the data suggest?

A quick comparison of Guimaraes’ playstyle wheel with his peers across Europe’s top five domestic leagues brings up a couple of interesting names.

Monaco’s Lamine Camara is one of the most promising midfielders in Europe. While he is not the most proficient dribbler, the 22-year-old is positive in possession. He is also excellent at receiving and protecting passes under pressure, with the technical ability to leave defenders flat-footed.

When passing, Camara prefers to keep play ticking over with short exchanges but is efficient with his longer balls (defined as those travelling 35-plus yards) too, with a 63 per cent completion rate over the past three seasons. His tally of 15 assists in that period ranks first among all Ligue 1 central and holding midfielders.

Set pieces are a key part of his chance creation, as seen below, with Camara capable of delivering high and low crosses of varying trajectories and pace. From open play, his underlapping runs between defenders create cutback chances, while against scampering defences in transition, he can find his forwards in behind too.

Defensively, the Senegal international is a ball-hunter and can leave his back line exposed, though his reading of the game improved last season. Camara ranked second among all Ligue 1 midfielders for ‘adjusted’ interceptions (blocked passes and interceptions) at 4.9 per 1,000 opposition touches behind only Toulouse’s Pape Diop (5.2).

Staying in France’s top flight, Kevin Danois of Auxerre is another interesting prospect. The 22-year-old was one of his team’s standout players in 2025-26 as they steered clear of relegation.

While nominally an attacking midfielder, Danois regularly played deeper, with over 60 per cent of his passes coming in the middle third.

His profile has some similarities with that of Camara. Danois is comfortable receiving under pressure and turning away, is an accurate long passer (68 per cent completion on 4.2 attempts per 90), and prefers to operate in the wider areas higher up the pitch.

Danois can be careless with his passes and guilty of taking too many touches, while his defensive awareness has not been tested that much, with Auxerre typically positioning him higher up the pitch.

Kevin Danois takes a corner during Auxerre’s 0-0 draw with Strasbourg in March (Kenzo Tribouillard/AFP via Getty Images)

The visual at the top of this section also includes Inter duo Nicolo Barella and Hakan Calhanoglu. Barella would likely cost a hefty fee, and Calhanoglu is 32 years old, making him a less attractive option.

However, their team-mate Petar Sucic might be an interesting option. Sucic joined Inter only last summer from Dinamo Zagreb for a reported €16.5million, but his value has skyrocketed after a strong debut season, followed by a solid World Cup with Croatia.

Another 22-year-old, Sucic is an agile operator, relying on his two-footedness and subtle shifts in direction rather than pace to dribble past opponents. His composure and ability to wrestle control of games belies his age.

The Coppa Italia semi-final against Como was a standout example of this.

With Inter down 2-0 on aggregate midway through the second leg at San Siro, Sucic popped up in the box to assist Calhanoglu before setting him up again with a cross from the left for the equaliser.

He then showed poise, close control and awareness to score the 89th-minute winner.

Sučić’s winning goal caused the San Siro to erupt! #InterComo #CoppaItaliaFrecciarossa pic.twitter.com/hAUglmwvqG

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) April 22, 2026

Sucic likes to get stuck into tackles, making him a good fit for a counterpressing side. He ranked fourth among Serie A midfielders for ‘true’ tackles (tackles made, challenges lost, and fouls committed) with 10.8 per 1,000 opponent touches. His ‘true’ tackle win rate, however, was just 40 per cent, hinting that he needs to time his challenges better.

With Sandro Tonali as well as Guimaraes leaving the club this summer, there are big shoes to fill in that Newcastle midfield.

Jaissle and his team face Liverpool at St James’ Park in their Premier League opener on Sunday, August 23.

The clock is ticking to strengthen the squad.