Joelinton watch: How Newcastle's new number nine fared on his debut

It had taken just 36 seconds for Joelinton to make an impact.
How Joelinton fared on his Newcastle debutHow Joelinton fared on his Newcastle debut
How Joelinton fared on his Newcastle debut

And within an eventful 45 minutes on his Newcastle United debut, fans had a glimpse of what is to come - albeit a minor glitch.

The £40million record signing, after joining from Hoffenheim on Monday, watched on in the first-half as fringe players Yoshinori Muto and Rolando Aarons led the line.

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Indeed, it wasn’t the team news United supporters had hoped for, with many desperate to see their new Brazillian in action from the off.

But Steve Bruce arrived at Deepdale with a clear plan to field a different starting 11 in each half with players needing minutes ahead of the start of the Premier League season.

The introduction of Joelinton, which brought the biggest cheer of the afternoon, and Miguel Almiron in a strike pairing after the break is a sight which you can’t help but feel excited about.

In one of the Magpies’ best moves of the match, the duo were at the heart of it, seconds after the restart.

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The Paraguayan cut in from the right, slotted the ball into Joelinton, whose neat touch allowed him to turn quickly and get goalwards, leaving Patrick Bauer helpless to fouling him inside the area.

Despite just entering the pitch, Joelinton wanted to take it. Clear signs of a player who is desperate to impress and one that won’t shy away.

Ultimately, the 22-year-old wasn’t to be involved in much of the goalmouth action but showed the eagerness to drop deep and aim to bring his teammates into play.

In doing so, Joelinton was able to showcase his strength and again provide further flashes of a composed touch, as he did to win the penalty.

Now to the not so positive part...

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While the Brazillian positioned himself in the correct position for his set-piece defensive duties, something appeared to have bothered him in the build-up to Preston's winner.

As a long ball was floated into the area, Joelinton had his right arm up in the air.

And no less than a few seconds after putting it down, he was unable to react quick enough to Tom Clarke's knockout, clipping Bauer in the process to return the favour as the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

Joelinton did find the net late on, long after the linesman's flag had gone up.

That didn't stop the travelling fans at Deepdale cheering it, though, who will be hoping their new number nine will be firing on all cylinders come the first game with the Arsenal.