Paddy Kenny hails ‘amazing’ Joelinton for his versatility

Joelinton looked down and out at Newcastle United after struggling to make an impact in his debut season – the 25-year-old scored only two goals from 38 Premier League games in 2019/20 and followed that up with four goals from 31 league outings in 2020/21.  

Eddie Howe turned his career around this season, however, by dropping him into midfield and now he’s not looked back. Joelinton has been adept at turning over possession and has proven himself a brilliant ball carrier to turn defence in attack, drawing praise from Paddy Kenny.

The 25-year-old looks full of confidence and recently lead the line in Newcastle’s 3-0 win over Norwich City, scoring twice, so Kenny believes Howe has a versatile player who can ably operate in two roles. He told Football Insider: “Eddie Howe deserves so much credit.

“He’s the one who stuck him in midfield and he has been given this amazing level of confidence. It turns out he’s a phenomenal midfielder and he’s now a key player in that position for Newcastle. Then you stick him in the attack and he delivers.

“So it shows he can do a job there and versatility is a massive thing in football at the moment. You need to be able to do multiple jobs and at one point it looked like Joelinton couldn’t do one job. He will be at Newcastle for a long time. They could even give him a new deal as a thank you.”

Joelinton has made 113 appearances in all competitions since joining the Magpies from TSG Hoffenheim in 2019, scoring 14 goals with eight assists. The uncapped Brazilian has featured in 31 of Newcastle’s 34 Premier League games this season and has flourished as a box-to-box midfielder.  

He’s one of many players Howe has turned around, so Newcastle’s future looks bright.

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