12 January 2023 , 17:27
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Newcastle United star Joelinton has been charged with drink-driving and will appear in court later this month, police have said.
The Brazilian midfielder, 26, was pulled over by local police at 1:20am on Thursday morning and subsequently arrested by officers. Joelinton, who arrived at Newcastle from German side Hoffenheim for a then club-record £40million in the summer of 2019, and is believed to earn around £80,000 per week, was then charged for driving whilst above the legal limit for alcohol.
A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: "Shortly before 1.20am today [Thursday] officers pulled over a vehicle in the Ponteland Road area of Newcastle and arrested the occupant. Joelinton Casio, 26, of Ponteland, has since been charged whilst above the prescribed limit for alcohol. He is due to appear before magistrates in Newcastle on January 26."
Joelinton's court date comes just two days after Newcastle visit Southampton for the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final. After swatting aside Leicester City 2-0 on Tuesday evening at St James' Park, Eddie Howe 's side reached the final four of a cup competition for the first time since 2005.
Head coach Howe and club officials are aware of are understood to be aware of the incident involving Joelinton, who starred against Leicester just over 24 hours prior. The 26-year-old registered an assist for Dan Burn's opening strike midway through the second half and scored a goal of his own 12 minutes later.
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Joelinton was the standout from Tuesday's win and continues to silence his critics after a nightmare start to life at St James' Park. Labelled a flop under former manager Steve Bruce, the former Hoffenheim star has enjoyed a renaissance under Howe's tutelage and is now a key player of the Magpies.
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Joelinton's performance powered Newcastle to the EFL Cup semi-finals (NUFC/Newcastle United via Getty Images)Instrumental in helping Newcastle to currently sit third in the Premier League table, Joelinton and co have been enjoying a stellar season and will face Southampton over two legs in a bid to reach Wembley for the EFL Cup final. The team's form has St James' Park rocking again like before the Mike Ashley era, with his much-maligned 14-year ownership coming to an end last October.
"When I walked out from the tunnel, you could just see the scarves and the black and white, and what a picture, really," boss Howe beamed after beating Leicester. "The stadium for night games is always a thing of beauty, but then you see that atmosphere – and the movement of everyone around the stands.
"I thought it was set up to be, hopefully, a good performance from us. You just hope that we can live up to the support we're going to get, and I thought players did. Credit to the supporters for not getting anxious in that moment when we were missing chances, and not quite taking the excellent moves that we had. That certainly helped the players relax, and get the goal in the end."