Obafemi Martins - could wear 30 for the ToonNewcastle's £10million new boy Obafemi Martins went to sleep on Tyneside on Thursday night looking forward to UEFA Cup football and with a big decision to make.
The 21-year-old Nigerian was in the crowd at St James' Park as the Magpies clinched their place in meaningful European competition with a 0-0 draw against Ventspils.
He left with a five-year contract signed and sealed ahead of his unveiling on Friday afternoon, when it will be revealed whether or not he will take over Alan Shearer's number nine shirt.
Delighted boss Glenn Roeder said: "He's thinking about that. He was very successful in the number 30 which he wore at Inter Milan. He scored a lot of goals.
"Players are superstitious - whether he is going to be that superstitious that he wants to wear 30 at Newcastle, I do not know.
"He obviously knows the significance of the number nine at the club. That is available, as we all know, but I still maintain it is the person who wears the shirt, it's not the number.
"I played with and I have seen a lot of number nines at Newcastle who were not particularly good players and did not score many goals.
"I also respect that some of Newcastle's very, very best players did wear the number nine - and we know the last holder of that shirt was probably the best.
"He's going to sleep on it."
Martins may have relished the chance to get on to the pitch last night as his new club totally dominated, but simply could not convert pressure into goals.
James Milner came closest to breaking the deadlock with an 81st-minute free-kick which hit the bar, but a series of near-misses and the stubbornness of keeper Andris Vanins kept the home side at bay.
Newcastle go into the hat for the draw for the first round proper in Monaco today, and while Roeder was disappointed not to have won on the night, he was happy with the performance, and particularly those of central defenders Steven Taylor and Titus Bramble.
Roeder said: "I felt the defence, particularly the two central defenders, were really on their game and really concentrating 100 per cent the whole the time.
"We are working ever-so hard on those two in particular, Taylor and Bramble, who I think have got the makings of a very good partnership.
"I like working with them. I think they are two very good central defenders. At times, concentration has let them down, but not tonight.
"They dealed with any threat very easily and swept everything up to the extent that Steve Harper, who was so looking forward to this game, did not really have too much to do."
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