Newcastle’s Joelinton has been charged with drink-driving and is due to appear before a magistrates court two days after his side’s Carabao Cup semi-final first leg at Southampton.
The 26-year-old Brazilian striker-turned-midfielder was stopped by police in the Ponteland Road area of the city at 1.20am on Thursday and failed a breathalyser test after being pulled over.
Joelinton, who lives in the Darras Hall area of the Ponteland, a large village in Northumberland which is home to many local footballers, was signed by Newcastle’s former manager, Steve Bruce, for £40m from Hoffenheim in 2019. He initially struggled as a centre-forward until Bruce’s successor, Eddie Howe, relocated him to a left-sided midfield role last season.
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Since then he has gone from strength to strength on the pitch and previously only attracted headlines off it when fined £200 after breaking lockdown restrictions to have a haircut during the pandemic.
On Tuesday night Joelinton shone at St James’ Park as Howe’s side beat Leicester in the Carabao Cup quarter-final but barely 24 hours later he was arrested. A spokesperson from Northumbria Police said on Thursday: “Shortly before 1.20am today officers pulled over a vehicle in the Ponteland Road area of Newcastle and arrested the occupant. Joelinton Casio, 26 of Ponteland, has since been charged with driving whilst above the prescribed limit for alcohol. He is due to appear before magistrates in Newcastle on 26 January.”
Howe, who was swiftly made aware of the incident, prides himself on maintaining high disciplinary standards on and off the pitch.
