Newcastle United Under-21s take on FC Edmonton - and an Ameobi brother - at Little Benton on Friday



Newcastle United Under-21s welcome Canadian side FC Edmonton to Little Benton for a friendly on Friday afternoon. Lining up for the NASL side will be former Magpie Tomi Ameobi, brother of Shola and Sammy. As he prepares to return to his home town, he tells Tom Easterby about his family's affections for United, and how he's finding life across the pond...

"It's been a good few years since I was last there - I think it's been about ten years," says Tomi Ameobi, casting his mind back to the last time he set foot in Newcastle United's Little Benton training base. "There won't be many people that I know there, but it'll be good to be back home around family."

On Friday, Tomi - the younger brother of Shola and elder brother of Sammy - will line up for Canadian outfit FC Edmonton against a Magpies Under-21 side at the Academy, just over a decade after leaving United for Leeds.

"It was a short amount of time - I think it was around six months I was there," the 27-year-old tells nufc.co.uk.

"It was a tough couple of months, because up until that point I'd only been involved in football for around a-year-and-a-half before that, so there was a big gap in terms of quality between me and the other players.

"But I guess I learned a lot in that six months, and that was the foundation for me moving forward in my career. It gave me a benchmark, playing against and with better players, as to how much work I needed to put in to be where I want to be."

The 'middle' Ameobi brother's brief stint in a black and white shirt saw him line up alongside the likes of David Edgar, Matty Pattison and Paul Huntington, who were all in his year.

Looking back, the former Scunthorpe United and Doncaster Rovers man has only fond memories of his time at the club, which came to an end in 2005.

"To be honest, I think I was in awe at having the opportunity to be there," he says, his affinity with the Magpies clear. "Having my older brother there was amazing. I think it was a bit of luck and obviously already having a connection there which sort of got my foot in the door, so I was just trying to make the most of the opportunity that I had.

"At the time, I didn't really expect it to go anywhere, because I was only supposed to be in for a couple of weeks to start with anyway. As it turned out they said they'd take me to the end of the season.

"It was a great group of lads, and the coaching staff were amazing as well. It's a period that I do cherish."

Friday's friendly brings one-third of the Ameobi brothers back to Tyneside, with Sammy now out on loan at Cardiff City in the Championship and Shola plying his trade at Fleetwood Town in League One.

But Tomi says the emotional connection that binds him and his family to United is as strong as ever.

And the well-travelled frontman bears no resentment towards his siblings, who both went on to represent the club the Ameobis regard with such affection.

"Everyone in Newcastle is more or less a fan of Newcastle United, and with having a brother playing there, immediately the family just took to the team. Shola's not there anymore and Sammy's out on loan, but Newcastle is the team that me and the rest of my family hold dear to my heart," he says.

"My brothers and I are still very close, and when I'm home I always spend time with them. My relationship with my brothers is something that has helped me throughout my career. They're great, great role models for me.

"People always used to say 'aren't you a bit gutted that they're there and you're not at that level?', but I don't think that's ever been the case," continues Ameobi. "Whatever we've done or gone on to do individually, we've always been there supporting each other.



"It's never been a case of sibling rivalry. Both of them have been great role models to me - I've learned lots from Shola and Sammy (pictured in the centre below with Tomi, then on trial at Bradford City, in a friendly in 2009), even though he's a few years younger than me."

Of the three, Tomi has undoubtedly enjoyed the most nomadic career to date. FC Edmonton, who play in the North American Soccer League, are his 11th club. He's played in four different countries - England, Iceland, Finland and, now, Canada.

But, as Ameobi and his side prepare to face Peter Beardsley's young Magpies, he says he's happy to have finally found a home across the pond at the Clarke Stadium.

"It was great, having the experience of going to all these different countries and playing for different clubs and it's something that will stay with me forever, but I felt like it was time to try and put down roots somewhere," he explains. "When the opportunity came to extend my contract for an extra couple of years, rather than move on and try and find something, I chose to stay.

"Usually - because I've moved around a few countries - it's taken me a couple of months to settle in, but after the first couple of weeks I felt at home at Edmonton. Obviously it's a lot further away from home than Finland or Iceland, but I think it's just the nature of Canadians to be welcoming. I'm enjoying it.

"The club have been fantastic with me, and I enjoy the way of life out in Canada."

Edmonton arrived in the UK as part of their pre-season tour last Friday, and began training north of the border the day they touched down. Ex-Rangers player Colin Miller's men have also had two friendlies - a 2-0 win over Partick Thistle and a 2-1 victory over Airdieonians - in the past week.

"It's been pretty non-stop," says Ameobi.

"The last few games we've played have been a lot more physical, whereas I think on Friday Newcastle will try and get the ball down and play. It'll give us a different type of test - more like what we're used to back in North America."

For Newcastle-born Ameobi, it's a return to his roots - and to squeeze in some time with the rest of a family synonymous with Newcastle United.

"We've got the weekend off after the game, so me and a couple of the other boys are going to stay and watch the (Tyne-Wear) derby game on Sunday," he says.

"With playing in different countries, my family don't usually get the chance to watch me play, so it'll be nice to have family and friends there. I don't think my mum's ever seen me play before, which sounds absolutely crazy, so it'll be nice to have her there. I'm looking forward to it."