Newcastle United are set to welcome back vice-captain Joelinton to the squad for Monday's trip to Coventry City. The Brazilian international midfielder has missed the entirety of this season with a thigh injury after being named as the club's new vice-captain by head coach Matthias Jaissle.
In that time, Newcastle have made a positive start to the season, taking eight points from their first five Premier League matches and they head to the CBS Arena on Monday looking to build on the positive platform they have given themselves.
Jaissle hails Joelinton's qualities
Joelinton was spotted back in open training last week and has stepped up his recovery since then to allow him to be in a position to be available for selection on Monday, with Jaissle believing he will bring a mix of qualities that his side have missed so far this term.
"You know him as well quite good," Jaissle said in his pre-match press conference when asked about what Joelinton's return will bring to his group. "You saw him many times live, you have probably saw him live more times than I did in the stadium so, of course, he has on the ball and out of possession qualities when I just think about how much he can deliver and contribute to the team on the pitch."
"But as well off the pitch he is a true leader and probably in the training session you joined last week you could hear it already. He is communicative, he is a leader. His body language shows that and you need also warriors in the team so we are really happy to have him back."
Versatility in midfield
Joelinton has played his best football across his seven seasons on Tyneside as a midfielder after being moved back there in 2021 by Eddie Howe from his previous position as a forward. The midfield triumvirate he formed alongside Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali was among the Premier League's best when they were at their height but there have been doubts raised over whether his physical, ball-carrying qualities suit playing in a midfield two in Jaissle's 4-2-3-1 formation.
However, when asked that question, Jaissle insisted it isn't as black-and-white as that. "Mostly, for sure, we see him as a midfielder," Jaissle explained. "But he is also versatile and this is something I really appreciate with players. It is not only Joe but there are many more players in our squad who can play multiple positions. That helps the team, that helps the coach because you are also then less predictable."
"It is depending on how you see the formation. Often we start out of the 4-2-3-1 so we play with three midfielders. If the six tends to be slightly higher like we had the approach in the last match then you have two eights. So don't make it as fixed as you may think."
Selection headache for Jaissle
What Joelinton's return does do is present Jaissle with a positive headache of having seven players competing for two spots in the base of his midfield. As well as the big Brazilian, Jaissle has Nico Gonzalez, Lewis Miley, Sean Steur, Jacob Ramsey and Aladji Bamba to call on, while Joe Willock, who has played the majority of this season as a No 10, played in a deeper midfield role in the win over Hull City.
And while Jaissle insists he is happy with the make-up of his squad he admitted it is 'never a dream scenario' when head coaches look for the perfect balance in their squad. "Again, you can talk about three spots because many people can play multiple positions," Jaissle finished. "Even some of them can play other positions than the midfield. Of course as a coach you prefer always to have the perfect balanced squad but it's never a dream scenario usually happening."
"We are happy with the squad in general and we are trying to bring everyone in the best position like I said and hopefully giving many players game time but they need to deserve it."
