Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie reckons that Joelinton has looked like a "changed man" since Eddie Howe arrived at Newcastle.
The Brazilian has generally failed to live up to his £40m club record fee that the Magpies paid in 2019, but Downie believes that the striker is starting to find his feet.
What's the latest news with Joelinton?
Joelinton's Newcastle career has generally been hard work in truth. In 99 appearances, he's scored 11 goals and chipped in with only eight assists, which isn't a great return for the most expensive player in their history.
This season, his only goal came in the 3-3 draw with Brentford last month, but his improvements have been considerable since Howe's appointment.
According to WhoScored, Joelinton has been Newcastle's second-best player this term, with each of his top two performances coming in Howe's short reign on Tyneside.
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But it's been during his new found central midfield role where Joelinton has really excelled, starting each of the last three Premier League games there. The first two were defeats against Leicester and Manchester City, when Newcastle were heavily beaten, but the Brazilian produced one of his finest displays in the black and white shirt in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United on Monday.
Joelinton was named as Sky Sports' man of the match following an energetic midfield display when he produced the second-most tackles (4), most interceptions (3) and second-most blocked shots (2), which are impressive numbers for a player who's spent the majority of his career playing further forward.
Joelinton, who earns £87,000 per-week, received high praise from his manager, who described him as "absolutely brilliant" following the draw with the Red Devils, and Downie has been equally impressed with his form.
What did Downie say about Joelinton?
He told GIVEMESPORT: "He's been like a changed man, he really has. It was interesting in the game against Norwich, he was almost playing as a deep lying midfielder. He was getting stuck in and winning challenges, you could just hear the supporters loving it.
"You almost get as big as a roar at St James' Park if someone dives in with a challenge and comes out with the ball and the man than you do if the ball goes in the net for a goal."
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Could Joelinton continue playing in midfield?
In the longer term, Howe will surely be looking to add to his squad in January, but he's already shown a great understanding of the role, so there's absolutely no reason he won't continue playing there in the coming weeks.
However, that could depend on the fitness of Allan Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson, who both hobbled off against United, which could end up forcing the Newcastle boss to change his system and potentially push Joelinton further forward once again.