Newcastle United star Joelinton is expected to be named as a starter when Brazil take on Guinea on Saturday evening. The midfield powerhouse is poised to feature alongside Manchester United's Casemiro and West Ham United's Lucas Paqueta in the middle of the park after impressing since linking up with his fellow countrymen last week.
Brazil boss Ramon Menezes has been splitting his pool of players into two groups during training sessions, with one housing Saturday's starters and the other featuring the players who will have to settle for a place on the bench. Joelinton was picked in the first group in a big hint he will be deployed from the outset for the first of Brazil's two friendlies.
Joelinton is expected to start in midfield with Alisson, Danilo, Eder Militao, Marquinhos and Ayrton Lucas in defence. Casemiro and Paqueta will also be used in midfield, while Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr and Richarlison start in attack.
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“He’s shown himself to be strong and dynamic with very good intensity,” Menezes said during a recent press conference. “He can play three roles in midfield and he has a different profile to the players we brought into the squad before.”
Joelinton's transformation has been nothing short of incredible in recent. The former Hoffenheim man arrived on Tyneside with a huge price tag weighing him down as he failed to prove his worth as a striker.
A Ciaran Clark red card during one of Eddie Howe's first games in charge saw Joelinton moved into midfield where he instantly felt at home. The Newcastle man has since credited his club manager with reviving his St James' Park career.
"Since the arrival of Eddie Howe at the club, my career has been reborn. The change of position was natural [from centre-forward to more withdrawn], happening gradually," Joelinton said this week.
“When he arrived he already saw that I had the quality to do, I’m very happy in the position. Eddie is a guy that I have total respect and affection for, since his arrival at the club, always giving me confidence and helping me to evolve.
“This evolution comes since I changed my position and started playing in the midfield, last season, the sale of Newcastle United and the arrival of the new coach. I knew that last year was difficult [to be called up by Brazil], with the team already formed for the World Cup, but I knew that if I kept evolving – and that’s what I did, I never stopped working – I knew that my time would come. Now I’m here, I hope to show my quality to come back other times.”
