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Shola Ameobi prioritises Newcastle over Nigeria Despite expressing his delight after receiving his first call-up to Nigeria's national team, Shola Ameobi says Newcastle United remains his priority
Newcastle's Nigerian forward Shola Ameobi admitted on Tuesday that the club's commitments will always be his top priority. The 31-year-old, who played for England's U21 team, has received his first call-up to the Super Eagles last week. Newcastle boss Alan Pardew said he was worried that Ameobi 's call-up could deprive him of the player for around four weeks in the event that he plays for Nigeria at January's African Nations Cup finals in South Africa. "I think with my age and the travelling, that's what he's (Pardew) worried about. You don't get back until later, you don't get much time to recover, but it's something that we will look at and make sure I'm not doing a disservice to the club," Ameobi was quoted as saying by Sky Sports. "Newcastle will always be No 1 for me; that is the bread and butter, so that is something we'll look at. But he's delighted for me, as you'd expect, because he wants a squad full of internationals here. He's happy for me. "This is the first opportunity to do something that I've always wanted to do. It's a great honour and I don't take it lightly." Ameobi went on to reveal the reasons for his decision to represent two-time African champions Nigeria. "You'd be a fool if you didn't want to play at the very highest level and certainly I'm no fool. I want to play at the top as every other player does - that's what drives me and that's why I'm still here wanting to play in the Premier League," he added. "I want to do the best I can. I don't just want to be a local hero, I want to be an international one. That's what has driven the decision." http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/58021.aspx
