Joelinton switched to Newcastle United last summer for a lot of money. There they had high expectations of the striker – but possibly wrong ones.
The striker history of Newcastle United is full of big names.
First and foremost of course Alan Shearer. Club legend. National hero. Scored 182 goals in 374 games for the Magpies.
Or Michael Owen. 14 years of the most expensive transfer in club history. And now there’s another one with that status.
Joelinton switched from TSG Hoffenheim to Newcastle United last summer for the record transfer of 44 million euros.
Joelinton and the high expectations
In St. James’ Park the Brazilian was given the legendary number 9, so it is clear that with this replacement and the back number certain expectations are raised.
In Newcastle, however, fans are now wondering who came up with the idea of spending so much money on a striker who obviously can’t do what he’s supposed to.
Joelinton has been struggling with scoring goals so far. He has 28 Premier League appearances on his books, and scored just one small goal.
On Matchday 3, he scored Steve Bruce’s team to a 1-0 victory with his goal at the Tottenham Hotspur.
Since then, the 23-year-old has not scored since then – and that despite a total of over 2,200 minutes of play.
Shearer expresses lack of understanding
At the weekend, ex striker Shearer expressed his lack of understanding about the transfer to the BBC.
“Someone decided to say, ‘We’ll spend 40 million pounds on him, give him the number 9 jersey and set him up as a centre-forward,'” the former angular striker explained. “But he’s not centre-forward. Someone in Newcastle has decided to take a big risk for him.”
Funny. Apparently ex-coach Rafa Benitez has spoken out against a joelinton transfer. After his dismissal and the installation of Steve Bruce as head coach, club owner Mike Ashley presented Joelinton a few days later as the most expensive transfer in club history.
“You have to remember that he has never scored more than six or seven league goals in a season,” Shearer noted.
In fact, Joelinton did not necessarily shine as a clipper in the Bundesliga last season. However, he did manage seven goals in 28 games.
Nagelsmann knew how to use Joelinton correctly
Nevertheless, the Brazilian was enormously important in Nagelmann’s system. With his physical presence he tied several opponents, secured the balls in the last period and put his team mates in the spotlight.
Shearer also showed understanding for the newcomer: “Can you imagine what that did to his confidence? It looks like he doesn’t want to go into the penalty area now, so he may have to play in a different position.”