13 things you need to know about Bruno Guimaraes | Arsenal FC Official Website

While many would have seen Bruno face us down the years, there are several things you may not know about our new number 39.

Could he have been a swimmer? Why does he wear number 39? Here are all the things you need to know about our new Brazilian midfielder.

Everyone is partial to a classic football shirt, but Bruno Guimaraes takes collecting to a whole new level.

The midfielder posted his enviable collection on Instagram, showing off shirts from across the Premier League, Europe and beyond.

He can now our new jerseys to his prized collection!

Bruno joined Newcastle in January 2022, helping the Magpies to from relegation candidates to Champions League qualifiers within 18 months.

The Brazilian was the heartbeat of the midfield and in March 2025, had the chance to lead out Newcastle in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley against Liverpool.

The Magpies prevailed, meaning Bruno became the first Newcastle captain since Bobby Moncur to lift a major trophy, ending 70 years without domestic silverware for the Toon Army.

Brazilian stars are no strangers to the N5 postcode.

We’ve had 15 come to Highbury and Emirates Stadium during our history, with five being signed by Mikel Arteta alone.

In August 2026, Bruno became the 16th to sign for Arsenal, and the first Brazilian central midfielder to play for us since Denilson in 2011.

While Bruno is adding his name to our long list of Brazilians, could he have been joining our Spanish contingent instead?

Despite being born in Rio de Janeiro, Bruno qualified for Spanish citizenship through his grandfather, who moved to Brazil from Spain.

Numbers have significant meaning and none more so than Bruno Guimaraes wearing number 39.

The number represented his father’s taxi number when working in Brazil. The number was also handed to him while on loan at Athletico Paranaense, it was a sign beyond coincidence for the midfielder.

Writing in The Players’   Tribune in February 2023, he said: “For me 39 is special — no, it’s more than that. It’s magical. The number 39 gave me everything in life.”

Bruno helped Brazil qualify for the Olympics in 2020, which was delayed by a year due to the pandemic.

Fast forward 12 months and Bruno was selected to play in the Olympic Games, where he helped Brazil go all the way to face Spain in the final in Tokyo.

Bruno played the full 90 minutes as Brazil triumphed 2-1 in extra-time to give our new midfielder.

While a gold medal came in 2021, could Bruno have been standing atop another podium in a different sport?

If his mother had had her way, who wanted her son to be a swimmer instead of a footballer.

As a child, Bruno contracted pneumonia and was advised to take a sport to aid recovery. His mum pushed for him to pursue swimming, but quickly found out that football was his sport of choice.

Bruno may dominate midfielders week in week out, but when he first started, the Brazilian found it hard to find his mojo.

That was until his youth team coach, Mario Jorge, who took the young midfielder under his wing to give him the confidence he needed to thrive.

Writing in The Players’ Tribune, he said: “I used to get so worked up the night before football that I’d have stomach pains and start throwing up. I’d get a headache and a fever sometimes and wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. When I played, instead of playing free, I worried about messing up.

“My coach, Mário Jorge, said ‘Listen, don’t worry about all that. Just play like it’s for fun, and see what happens. After that, I got over the “block” and developed really well.”

After being born and growing up in Rio, Bruno looked at every opportunity he had to play professional football.

Having tried out at giants Botafogo and Fluminense, but ultimately told no,  Bruno signed for Audax Sao Paulo. This meant a move away from home to a new city to pursue his dream.

Despite missing home, Bruno continued to pursue his dream and after breaking into the first team at 19, he was then spotted by top division side Athletico Paranaense.

Donning his beloved 39, Bruno went on loan to Athletico Paranaense before sealing a permanent switch from Audax.

His two seasons went down in history as some of the most successful in the club’s history.

In the heart of the midfield, Bruno helped Athletico win the Copa Suamericana for the first time in their history, playing both legs against Colombian side Junior.

On top of that, Bruno netted the winner in the Copa do Brasil final first leg against Internacional before winning the second leg 2-1 to clinch the trophy for the very first time. In total, Bruno won four honours before venturing over the Lyon.

In January 2020, Bruno made the hop over the Atlantic and into mainland Europe to join Ligue 1 side Lyon.

Bruno made just three appearances in Ligue 1 before the Covid pandemic hit but when football returned, he helped Lyon shine on the European stage.

The midfielder first helped dump giants Juventus out on away goals before descending on Portugal for the knockout competition.

Bruno started the shock 3-1 victory over Manchester City to help Lyon reach the semi-finals of the UCL for the first time since 2010 and only the second time in their history.

Bruno is well accustomed to facing Arsenal since his arrival at Newcastle in January 2022.

In doing so, Bruno becomes the 38th Premier League player to play against us before becoming an Arsenal player. Since Mikel Arteta arrived at the club, he has signed 19 Premier League players who previously turned out against Arsenal.

In his spare time, Bruno has a few hobbies, including going fishing with his friends.

Earlier this year Bruno was seen out fishing with world champion in spearfishing Raphael Ambrosio. The Brazilian was also seen dabbling into fishing over the summer following the World Cup in north America.

Asked about his hobbies outside of playing football, he said: “Play with my kids. My favourite hobby, I love to go to the farm, the zoo, aquarium with them, play with them. My favourite hobby is definitely to fish. I love to fish.”