Man Utd and Chelsea eye ‘German Pogba’ as Casemiro reveals admiration for Newcastle United star

Casemiro has described Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes as ‘exceptional’ and has revealed his ‘comfort’ at playing alongside the Magpies star in the Brazil side.

The 25-year-old has impressed since making a £40m move to St James Park from French club Lyon in the January 2022 transfer window and played a lead role in helping Eddie Howe’s side end their two-decade absence from the Champions League. Guimaraes has recently put pen-to-paper on a new contract with the Magpies after receiving reported interest from the likes of Liverpool and Real Madrid - although there have been suggestions the new deal contains a £100m release clause.

Speaking ahead of Brazil’s 1-1 draw with Venezuela, Casemiro praised the impact his compatriot had made since he moved to the Premier League and described Guimaraes as ‘a great player’. He told Brazilian outlet OGOL: “Recently, Bruno is a player who has been doing an exceptional job at Newcastle.

“With every workout and every game I’m more comfortable with him. He is a great player, who has been demonstrating this in the most difficult competition in the world.

“It’s not up to me to determine who I’m going to play with, but of course, when you play longer with a player, you have a greater adaptation.”

Red Devils eye new Pogba

Manchester United are reportedly one of a number of clubs monitoring the progress of as young player dubbed ‘The German Paul Pogba’.

TEAMtalk have reported United, Chelsea and Bayern Munich are all showing an interest in Schalke 04 midfielder Assan Ouedraogo after he impressed during the opening months of the Bundesliga II season. The 17-year-old marked his senior debut in fine style as he scored in a 5-3 defeat at Hamburg on the opening day of the campaign and he has gone on to feature in all of his side’s competitive fixtures so far this season.

Speaking after the defeat, Schalke coach Thomas Reis praised the youngster for his impact but admitted he would tread carefully when it came to his introduction into life in Germany’s second tier.

He told Sky Sports: “We want to continue to build him up carefully and make sure that not too much rains down on him. He showed what he shows in training. So it was clear to me that a little carelessness would do us good. He confirmed it. He has nasty body moves. This is great quality. He got his reward today. It’s a beautiful story, of course. Nevertheless, he will be just as annoyed that we go home with zero points.”

United are said to be one of a trio of clubs that are showing ‘an active interest’ in Ouedraogo’s development for a player that could command a fee of around £15m with Schalke viewing the talented midfielder as one of the best prospects to come through a youth system that has developed the likes of Manuel Neuer, Mesut Ozil, Leroy Sane and Ilkay Gundogan over the last 20 years.