Its official - Newcastle United have announced the signing of Brazil international midfielder Bruno Guimaraes from Lyon on a four-and-a-half year deal:

In Newcastle's official announcement, they wrote of "an undisclosed fee" but Lyon, the French club who have sold him tweeted they sold him for a fee of 50M Euros:

The player will travel to England next week to begin the of keeping the St James' Park club in The Premier League before looking to add to his Olympic Gold Medal with Brazil.

Its a signing that is transformative for Newcastle as a club both this season and beyond and is a real coup considering the midfielder, who has starred against the likes of PSG and Man City in The Champions League, would walk into any Premier League side with an all-round game that has seen him coveted around Europe from Juventus to Madrid.

The 24 year-old, 6ft defensive midfielder will be Eddie Howe's third signing for Newcastle after the capture of Kieran Trippier from Atletico Madrid and Chris Wood from Burnley and will instantly solidify the Newcastle midfield and any fears of him adapting to the North-East climate will be allayed by an excellent game at Ibrox against Glasgow Rangers in September in The Europa League in a 2-0 win for Lyon:

He is fast becoming the complete midfielder:

and his arrival will bolster Joelinton's chances of making the Brazil international squad for The World Cup while Newcastle fans have a new hero and will be eagerly anticipating more before the January transfer window shuts on Monday night.

Guimaraes' was the kind of on-off transfer saga that has characterised Newcastle's dealings so far this January window to the frustration of Geordie supporters -the Lyon Official Twitter account published a denial that an agreement has been struck midweek but football observers and Lyon's own fans pointed out that this is the club's modus operandi - perhaps linked to their Stock Market Listed status & the need to keep shareholders informed - and they issued similar statements about Alexandre Lacazette and Ferland Mendy before their respective moves to Arsenal and Real Madrid.

Indeed, transfer guru Rudy Galletti confirmed as much when he said the deal WAS still on and agreement had been reached at 2.30pm on Wednesday with a latest update:

What is beyond any doubt is that the Brazilian midfielder, who has won three caps for his country so far and is part of the current squad, is an exceptional footballer renowned for his passing ability and competitive instincts who has been watched by many top clubs across Europe including Arsenal in The Premier League and will significantly improve not just Newcastle's survival hopes this season but the team for the long-term:

With a crucial run of five fixtures coming up for Newcastle against Everton, Aston Villa, West Ham, Brentford and Brighton, whose Geordie left-back Newcastle have reportedly bid for as well, it will be a huge boost for The Magpies if Guimaraes is wearing the black & white in that central midfield position at St James' Park.