Roeder: 'Lay Off Him!'

Glenn Roeder has once again gone public and defended one of his players ... this time Shola Ameobi. We've seen him go to the rescue of Boumsong, Ramage, Emre and Babayaro in recent weeks, and he says critics are jumping on a cruel bandwagon.

Roeder: 'Someone decided they didn't like Shola as a player and then it spreads and lots of people don't like him. It disappoints and annoys me how easily people jump on the bandwagon. Shola is a young player and he a lovely player to work with. He plays in every game and he knows his faults and he knows what people think of him as well.

'He knows he can be too gentle and he needs to be more aggressive in games, but he also has fantastic ability. He has wonderful receiving skills, but he can be a little bit sloppy with his lay-offs, which is down to concentration.

'We need to make him aware of some his faults, but not at the price that he loses his confidence. He mustn't forget what he is good at.

'Maybe, over the next few years, he can be Newcastle's regular striker. If you look at his performance against Tottenham, he was a very difficult player to play against and every time he scores I'm so pleased for him.'

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