It’s official – Joelinton is Newcastle United’s Player of the Year.
The club made the announcement on May 16th ahead of our final home game of the season against Arsenal.
There were a few candidates for the award, but no one more deserving than Joelinton. He’s been our most consistent player this year, and the way he’s turned his Newcastle career round is truly remarkable.
The likes of Jonjo Shelvey and Fabian Schar probably came close, while our January recruits have also done exceptionally well. Allan Saint-Maximin has been irresistible at times, but there’s no way our player of the season couldn’t be Joelinton.
Joelinton reacts to being named Newcastle’s Player of the Year
The midfielder has expressed his delight at winning the award in his third season as a Toon player.
“I’m delighted and very happy to win this award. Thank you to the fans, the players and the staff for helping me, and all my family and friends. Thank you,” he told the club’s official website.
“It has been a great season for me. Many things have happened, but I’m very happy to help the team and help the team stay in the Premier League. Hopefully next season will be even better.”
The Joelinton renaissance
The campaign started with a change, as Joelinton gave up the number nine shirt. That went to Callum Wilson, as the Brazilian took the vacant number seven jersey.
A weight was suddenly off his shoulders, and he actually started the season brightly. Alongside Saint-Maximin, he was probably one of our better players before Steve Bruce was relieved of his duties.
But then Eddie Howe arrived and changed everything. The new manager quickly singled out Joelinton for praise, and since then it’s been a match made in heaven.
The 25-year-old immediately got better under Howe, but the real change happened on November 30th.
Ciaran Clark got an early red card against Norwich, forcing Howe to shuffle his pack. He made the bold call to play Joelinton in midfield, and it worked an absolute treat. He was an enforcer in the middle of the park, making tackles galore as if he was prime Mo Diame.
That moment led us to where we are today. Joelinton has transformed into a sensational box-to-box midfielder, disrupting play with his physicality. He’s also continued to show is versatility, having joy out wide too.
The £40million man has four goals to his name this season, including a brace in the recent 3-0 win over Norwich where he was serenaded by the travelling Toon Army.
The way Joelinton has salvaged his Newcastle career is sensational. This never looked possible at the start of the season. He’s now a fan favourite with his own song to the tune of Oasis’ She’s Electric.
He’s Brazilian, he only cost £40million, and we certainly think he’s brilliant. It’s Joelinton!