Former Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has now opened up on the transition of Joelinton from a forward to a midfielder.
Bruce revealed that the £40 million signing struggled to score goals consistently under him at Newcastle and he was forced to use Joelinton as a winger because of that.
Newcastle signed Callum Wilson to lead the line for them instead.
The Brazilian has now transitioned into a central midfielder under Eddie Howe. Bruce believes that Joelinton is not a natural goalscorer and he has drawn similarities with the Arsenal summer signing Kai Havertz.
The German international is also capable of operating in a number of roles and he is not a reliable goalscorer.
He said: “I then played him where he played at Hoffenheim on the left. But to be fair I never saw him as one of the midfield three like Eddie plays him now.
“But we bought Callum Wilson to play through the middle and all Callum is interested in is scoring, if you look at his stats, they are good.
“That’s why I say all the time that forward players, especially players who score a goal, are the most important.
“Joelinton is a typical one like Havertz who can play in a number of positions but I don’t think he’s a natural goalscorer in terms of a number nine.”
Joelinton has established himself as an important first-team player for Newcastle since transitioning into a midfielder. He has been one of the first names on the team sheet and Newcastle will be delighted with his contributions under Eddie Howe.