Shola Ameobi

Football player infobox
playername = Shola Ameobi


fullname = Foluwashola Ameobi
height = height|meters=1.88
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1981|10|12
cityofbirth = Zaria
countryofbirth = Nigeria
currentclub = Newcastle United
clubnumber = 23
position = Striker
youthyears = 1995–2000
youthclubs = Newcastle United
years = 2000–
2008
clubs = Newcastle United
→ Stoke City (loan)
caps(goals) = 172 (28)
006 0(0)
nationalyears = 2000–2003
nationalteam = England U21
nationalcaps(goals) = 020 0(7)
pcupdate = 17:38, 5 October 2008 (UTC)
ntupdate = 20:34, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Foluwashola 'Shola' Ameobi (born October 12, 1981 in Zaria) is a Nigerian born English football player. He is currently playing for Newcastle United as a striker.

He is the older brother of Doncaster Rovers striker Tomi Ameobi and Newcastle Youth Squad player Sammiusto Ameobi.

Career

Ameobi started out with the Walker Central Youth Team in Newcastle, for whom he was spotted playing by a Newcastle United scout at the age of thirteen. After initially struggling to come to terms with the standard, Ameobi started to excel and made rapid strides towards the first team.

Ameobi signed for the Newcastle United Academy on July 1, 1995, but did not make his debut for the senior team until five years later, September 9, 2000, in a home game against Chelsea. He made 22 appearances for Newcastle that season, aided by injuries to then first choice strike partnership Alan Shearer and Carl Cort.

His erratic form has earned him some criticism in the past, and although never having been claimed as a prolific goalscorer, his goals to games ratio, up to Christmas 2005 was just 34 goals from 186 Newcastle United appearances, although many of these appearances have been from the substitutes bench. Due to injuries in the latter stages of the 2005-06 campaign Ameobi gained a regular starting place, and the player scored six goals in Newcastle's last twelve Premiership games.

In the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup, Ameobi scored twice in Newcastle's away tie at Lillestrøm S.K., taking him to second place in the club's table of leading goalscorers in European competition with twelve goals, behind only Alan Shearer.

During the 2006-07 season, Ameobi needed a hip operation because an injury had been plaguing him for the past two seasons. Newcastle's shortage of match fit First team strikers during in previous season had forced him to be postpone this surgery. This caused his team-mates to reportedly carry him through to the January transfer window when the Magpies could strengthen their striking optionsFact|date=January 2008. The problem eventually forced Glenn Roeder to send Ameobi for surgery two months before the transfer window, making the 0-0 draw away game to Manchester City his last game and ruling him out for the rest of the season. He had made 13 appearances (three as a substitute) and scored five goals.

Ameobi and the Newcastle medical team reported his hip operation in the U.S. was a success and that the club doctors and medical staff would work on his rehabilitation. It was originally thought that he would not be fit to play until the start of 2007-08 season, but his rehabilitation progressed quickly and he made a shock return with three games remaining in the season, clocking approximately 30 minutes of match action against Reading FC and making a further two appearances.

On 27 March 2008 Ameobi agreed a loan deal with Stoke City until the end of the season, to help their promotion campaign. It is understood that a loan fee of around £500K has been agreed and that a possible permanent transfer has been discussed subject to Stoke winning promotion. However it is said that Ameobi has rejected a possible move, with Stoke chairman stating ' We are not desperate to sign him'. Ameobi made his debut for Stoke against Sheffield Wednesday on March 29, 2008, the game ended 1-1.Ameobi is linked with a permanent move to Championship side Norwich City and a link up with former manager Glenn Roeder, but Shola has still been linked with premiership new-boys West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City.

On 14 August 2008, Ipswich Town manager Jim Magilton confirmed that the club were in talks with Ameobi and that the club were keen to get the deal finalised as long as Ameobi was willing to play in the Coca Cola Championship. However on 17 August, Ameobi failed a medical showing that he has hamstring problems and the deal collapsed.

Pop culture

Ameobi is often referred to on "I'm on Setanta Sports", a show on Setanta Sports that stars Jose Mourinho, Sven-Göran Eriksson and Wayne Rooney in puppet form. 'Dave from Newcastle' calls just about every show to ask what Jose thinks about Ameobi, and eventually moves to Stoke and calls from there to ask about Ameobi's new squad. In one episode, Ameobi is for sale on eBay with Jose winning him at the end of the show. In a sit down interview with Rooney, Dave from Stoke (originally Newcastle) admits he has an Ameobi addiction and states that you don't give up Ameobi, but you can manage it.

References

External links

* [http://www.nufc.co.uk/page/PlayerProfiles/0,,10278~7870,00.html Shola Ameobi player profile] at nufc.co.uk
*soccerbase|22171|Shola Ameobi
* [http://www.icons.com/ameobi/ Shola Ameobi Official Website] at Icons.com

Persondata
NAME= Ameobi, Foluwashola
ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Ameobi, Shola
SHORT DESCRIPTION=
DATE OF BIRTH= 1981-10-12
PLACE OF BIRTH= Zaria, Nigeria
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=