Newcastle United have a new No.9. Shola Ameobi is delighted, he tells Stuart Rayner

AS Newcastle United’s longest-serving player, Shola Ameobi has been here far too often to fret.

On Tuesday, the Magpies unveiled the long-awaited new occupant of their No.9 shirt, Papiss Demba Cissé.

Nobody given the hallowed number, never mind having had £7.5m spent on him, joins Newcastle expecting to twiddle his thumbs on the bench. Ameobi has just been shunted another place down the pecking order.

He said: “Do you know what? You would think in a way it would disappoint me but really, it doesn’t.”

For Ameobi, hoping to make his 250th league appearance and score his 50th career goal at Fulham today, new strikers are like new managers – a regular occurrence.

“I will have a good guess,” he says, when asked how many strikers Newcastle have signed in the 11 years since his debut. He opts for 28.

While it is possible to quibble over who is and is not a bona-fide striker, the figure is around 20. “Nearly as many as managers I have had.”

So just as Ameobi can slip into auto-pilot talking about clean slates and new challenges when the man in the manager’s office changes, he knows the script for a rival forward off by heart.

He added: “We have had numerous strikers come in since I have been here and it does not change for me.

“You have to fight for places at every club and it is no different here. It makes you work harder.

“When a top player comes in, you know you have to fight harder and do better to get a place in the team and that can only bode well for the club. I have always seen it that way.

“It is another player you have to fight against, but every player in every position has that and it is no different for myself. I always try and look at it from the bigger picture.

“We have a small squad and the manager has always spoken about wanting to get another striker in.

“Cissé had a fantastic season last time in the Bundesliga. He is a top, top player so like everyone else, I am excited.”

Could Cissé pose a threat to Ameobi’s future where 20 others have failed?

The 30-year-old said: “To be honest, I do not look past a two-week margin.

“I just tend to focus on the next two games.

“In the off-season, you sit down and that is when I tend to think about what’s happening over the year and look forward.

“During the season, I tend to focus on what is at hand.

“You can worry about everything in this game but that is something I tend to overlook – just get on with it and see what happens at the end of the season.”

The chances are Cissé will not even train with the team in the next two weeks, as he is at the African Cup of Nations with Senegal. Demba Ba is there too, giving Ameobi an opportunity. He added: “I know the manager is faithful to his team if they are doing well for him.

“He has shown that all season. If you are doing well you will be in the team.

“He sticks with those who have done well for him.

“You know if you have done well, you are going to be in the team and I cannot see that changing.

“Some managers say stuff and don’t really stick to it . However, we feel this manager gives everyone a chance and as players you know if you get your chance and do well, it is more than likely you will keep your place. It is great for us.

“We have had a great season and the reason for that is because we have a good squad of players and we have all pitched in at different times.

“That is the formula for the success we have had.”

Cissé’s arrival probably guarantees one thing – Newcastle’s only senior Geordie striker will never wear the club’s most special shirt.

He said: “To be honest, it has never, never been that much of an ambition to wear the No.9.

“I know the tradition which goes with the shirt but it is just about playing football and being in that team.

“I would far rather play 30 games a season wearing No.23 than wearing No.9 and not playing a lot.

“For me it has always been about playing and that is the bottom line.” In that regard, today is an ideal opportunity.

His last like this – playing at Craven Cottage days after Andy Carroll was sold without being replaced – ended badly.

“Yeah, it was not a great night,” the striker recalls.

“We lost the game just days after losing Andy, which was a big blow to us at the time. To then get my cheekbone smashed in again was not a great evening. Injuries are part of my... cv, season, but you just get on with it.”