Manchester United and Manchester City have been informed Bruno Guimaraes' release clause will be valid from the last week of May to the beginning of the last week of June.
Guimaraes has been a revelation for Newcastle since signing from Lyon in January 2022 and he's now regarded as one of the finest midfielders in the Premier League.
Newcastle are theoretically the richest club in the world after their Saudi-led takeover, but there's a growing acceptance at St. James' Park that pragmatic sales will be required to operate within Financial Fair Play constraints, which could see Guimaraes leave this summer.
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City have been linked with a move for Guimaraes and reports have suggested there could be interest from United, who Dan Ashworth is set to join from Newcastle.
Guimaraes' camp negotiated a release clause in his latest Newcastle contract and it's emerged that can be triggered from the last week of May to the beginning of the last week of June. The Brazilian international will be available for £100milliion during that timeframe and Newcastle will have full control over talks once that deadline expires.
On Friday, Newcastle manager Eddie Howe confirmed the release clause in his press conference and said: "Having that was well planned and structured by the club, in a sense that there’s a sort of finish point. We don’t want constant speculation, it’s not healthy for the player or us.
"It goes without saying we want to keep him, I want to build our team around him. His form has been very good — he seems very happy and settled.
"He’ll be thinking about a very busy summer ahead, where hopefully we can take the team with him a big part of it. But we aren’t in control of that so let’s see.
"I am aware of his contractual status but it's not something I focus on. When it’s something you don’t necessarily have control over, I don’t tend to worry about [the speculation linking him with moves]. It goes without saying what my thoughts on the Bruno situation are."
Newcastle are currently hamstrung by FFP constraints. "Where we sit now in terms of wages and transfer fees, I don't think we are in a position to do that," Howe said when asked whether his side would sign world-class players in the summer transfer window.
"We have to sign and develop players with the potential to become world-class. We are well on the way to doing that. It does not mean you can't have [world-class] players in your squad, it just means that you have to work really hard with them. I have no issue doing it."
Newcastle challenged the traditional 'Top Six' last season by qualifying for the Champions League, but they still finished below City and United in the table.
