Andy Carroll has hailed the “absolutely brilliant” Joelinton, insisting he is a “great finisher” in training who scores every type of goal.
The former NUFC striker also believes the Brazilian has been played out of position by Steve Bruce when used as a ‘number nine’ up front, insisting he’s much better out wide.
Praising his performances on the training pitch will only mean so much to Toon fans waiting to see him deliver when it really matters in the Premier League, however he has shown signs of clear improvement in 2021.
Has he done enough to justify his £40m transfer fee? Of course not, but he was effective throughout in last Friday’s 1-1 draw against Leeds, looking much more confident and capable in a slightly withdrawn role.
In a clip played on The Athletic’s Newcastle Pod On The Tyne podcast, Carroll had this to say about his former strike partner:
“The way he [Joelinton] plays, I think he’s absolutely brilliant,”
“I think he’s probably been playing out of position as a number nine, I don’t think he really is a number nine, he’s probably out wide.
“You see him in training, he finishes left and right feet, he scores with his head.
“He’s a great finisher.”
His all round game has certainly improved as he continues to adapt to Premier League football, however we do need to see Joelinton weigh in with goals.
When Callum Wilson is out, we seem heavily reliant on Allan Saint-Maximin to make something happen from nothing, so let’s hope big Joe can weigh in with a goal or two before our new no.9 returns after the international break.
THAT is what he needs to win fans over.
Shola Ameobi was supposed to be great in training, and Sunderland apart was useless.
Malcolm McDonald was apparently lazy in training, but on the pitch WHERE IT MATTERS was electric!
So Andy Carroll’s words mean S.F.A, apart from the odd unplayable game, getting £35 million for him was the best bit of business the club ever did apart from Perez!
Joseph(Quote)