Ask any Newcastle United fan who the most important player is to our form and system is right now, and you’d get a wide variety of answers.
Dan Burn is the beating heart of the team, Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali each produce midfield masterclasses on a regular basis, and Nick Woltemade’s technical ability and positioning is second-to-none.
But one player for much of Eddie Howe’s tenure has perhaps proven himself to be the most integral player at the gaffer’s disposal, and our form and quality of play when he’s not on the pitch does indeed a lot to be desired.
And in a fresh interview with the media, he’s hoping to be a Newcastle United player for much of the foreseeable future.
Joelinton hopes to extend Newcastle stay
Speaking to the media ahead of our crunch Champions League clash against Union Saint-Gilloise, Joelinton has addressed his future at the club.
It’s no secret that his transformation from £40m flop to eventual club player of the season has been nothing short of remarkable, and the big Brazilian has won over legions of fans on Tyneside.
“I love the club, I love the fans. I love the city. I’m really happy to live in Newcastle. My family is happy.
“I feel the connection with the fans and I’m enjoying my football playing in front of the Geordies.
“I hope we can stay together for a few more years.”
Big Joe is currently under contract until 2028, having just under three years left on his deal, but clearly has no intention of leaving anytime soon.
“It’s a massive game” – Joelinton
Discussing the game against Union Saint-Gilloise, who are currently unbeaten this season in all competition, Joelinton recognises that the Belgian Champions will be a formidable test on Wednesday night.
“I feel good. The team feels good. It’s all positive. We have an opportunity to win a game. It is a massive game.
“We have a lot of games but we don’t have time to lose any more. I hope we can do it with a good performance.”
Having narrowly lost to Barcelona in our opening game of this season’s competition, it’s imperative that we get a result against a fellow Pot 4 team and build momentum for the Benfica game later in October.
I’ve loved watching joelinton as he’s developed at nufc and when he’s on it is a formidable player despite what some knuckle draggers on here espouse.
He’s been erratic for a while now and altho he’s not alone in that this season, is also unavailable a fair bit. I hope he regains his pomp as the much heralded MF trio have looked a bit lost at times . I’m just not sure he will, but irrespective should remain a good squad option
GR(Quote)
Think this is meant to be a season of transition between Joelinton & Ramsey in terms of who’s the first choice started at LM & who’ll be more often on the bench given their respective ages – if all goes well, though big Joe would still start next season in games where we need extra physicality & do that role for a couple of years.
We do need the Willock out Frattesi in January transfer or, if not him, then a left footed young playmaker to thread passes between/through the 2 defensive lines for Wissa & big Nick too – so he doesn’t have to keep dropping so deep all the time. If nothing else, it provides a Plan B or C or allows us to chase a game successfully after going behind.
P(Quote)
well said good analysis I think your right that’s probably the way forward
Mike(Quote)