Joelinton has once again received some outside plaudits, this time for his performance at Anfield on Saturday.
Despite us only having 25% possession during the 3-1 defeat, the Brazilian’s work rate, hold up play, power and pace caught the eye, with several national newspapers, as well as Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, highlighted the qualities he has.
Klopp called his performance “outstanding”, saying he was “100 per cent made for the Premier League”, a perfect Rondon replacement and “really good signing” for the club.
High praise indeed. The problem sadly comes with the fact that we are not creating enough chances for him, and he is often dropping too deep to get the ball, with us at times struggling to get runners beyond him.
He was bought primarily to play as a number 9, but would he be better utilised in a different way?
At Hoffenheim, he often played on the right of a front three or as a false number 9 in a creative role – hence the comparisons to fellow Brazilian Firmino.
It certainly suits his natural tendency to drop a little deeper and run with the ball, so, with Andy Carroll close to returning to full fitness, is it time to play Joelinton wide of a central striker or as a second striker?
It’s surely an option for Steve Bruce as we are still searching for the right formula in the final third..
