Assessing Joelinton's debut vs Preston - An eventful 45 mins for the £40m Brazilian..
A 2-1 defeat for Newcastle United at Preston this afternoon, but it was a game that saw our new £40m Joelinton feature in the second half - and it was an eventful 45 minutes for the Brazilian.
As shown below, he won a penalty with his first touch, drawing the foul with a sharp turn in the box.
Moments later he then conceded one at the other end, however - although this didn't define what I thought was a promising debut from the striker in parts:
He showed few glimpses of class, with some very nice first-time touches and drops of the shoulder, also linking the play well at times and helping build attacks from false number 9 role.
I felt he also showed a clear willingness to put himself about and track back, although I suspect he won't be quite a physical and dominant in the air as Salomon Rondon.
That said, we didn't get the ball into him in good areas, with him often dropping deep to receive the ball.
Elsewhere, Almiron looked sharp (despite the poor penalty!), but another winger is essential to give us more options in attack.
Matty Longstaff tidy and energetic in a bright first half showing, but the likes of Aarons, Muto, Colback Ki, Sterry, Murphy were poor for me.
