Joelinton spoke to BBC Radio Newcastle after Wednesday’s EFL Cup victory over Bradford City: “I enjoyed myself – not only because I scored two goals, but the performance in general was very good. It gives us the confidence to push on.

“It has been a difficult start to the season for me. I hope I can keep going, be injury-free and play my best football.

“Like the Premier League and Champions League, [the EFL Cup] is very important for us. We want to attack every competition and win every game.

“We now focus on the Premier League again. I am very excited [to play Arsenal] – we had great games against them last season.”