Newcastle boss Glenn Roeder has backed strikers Obafemi Martins and Shola Ameobi.
Newcastle United boss Glenn Roeder has backed strike duo Obafemi Martins and Shola Ameobi to fire the club to success this season.The serious knee injury suffered by Michael Owen at the World Cup meant much of Roeder's pre-season was spent trying to find a suitable replacement.
After missing out on several targets, the Toon chief plumped for Internazionale hit-man Obafemi Martins in a £10 million deal, electing to pair him with Ameobi in attack.
In light of the fact Newcastle supporters have grown accustomed to the striking power of Alan Shearer and latterly, briefly, Owen - there is a level of expectancy on front players at St James' Park.
However, Roeder has declared himself more than content with his strikers, confident that they will prove to be a fruitful partnership.
"They are players in their own right, excellent players the two of them, and during the next few months we will see that partnership blossom," said Roeder.
"It is very early days. At the moment, we are playing, recovering and playing again after a couple of days, so it has not been easy to get on to the training ground and practice with the two of them.
"Shola, in the next couple of months - hopefully, we will get him to January - will need an operation on his hip, so he is not doing a lot of training between games anyway.
"It is hard to get the two of them together to work with them. They are having to do it during games, which is not the ideal situation.
"But I am very, very positive about those two. Once they click, they will be a very good partnership."
