Newcastle United Football Club News

• Nickname:Magpies
• Founded:1881
• Manager:Alan Pardew

• Ground:St James' Park
• Capacity:52,193

Martins wins Roeder praise

06 Mar 2007 - 16:35:03

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Newcastle United boss Glenn Roeder has paid tribute to the professionalism of Obafemi Martins in the striker's first season in the Premiership.

Roeder landed the Nigeria international for £10million in the summer and Roeder believes the former Internazionale hitman has taken to life at St James' Park like a duck to water.

Martins has netted 14 times after a slow start to the season and Roeder is full of praise for the 22-year-old marksman, who is already considered a folk hero on Tyneside.

"I love working with him. He's a top guy around the training ground and all the other players love him," Roeder told the Northern Echo.

"Bear in mind, in the last few years at Inter Milan he will probably have gone out with 18, 20 big-time top international players day in, day out.

"In the situation here at times there's been seven or eight senior players, so we've had to involve the kids.

"Yet his mentality to still work hard in training has been perfect.

"A lot of players who had come from Inter Milan would have thought 'no, I can't get myself motivated', but he has. I can't speak highly enough of Obafemi Martins."