SIR BOBBY ROBSON has thrown a paternal arm around the shoulder of Shola Ameobi and backed him to reveal his true self in Newcastle's crunch Champions League qualifier with Partizan Belgrade.

The England Under-21 striker was out of sorts in Saturday's 2-1 home defeat by Manchester United and Robson called him into his office on Monday for a quiet word and to assure him his place tonight was safe.

The Magpies' manager has resisted the temptation to push midfielder Kieron Dyer into an advanced role as support for skipper Alan Shearer.

Robson, who takes charge of his 200th Newcastle game, insisted he never had any doubts about sticking with 21-year-old Ameobi, with Craig Bellamy still sidelined because of knee trouble.

Ameobi scored three goals when he stood in for Shearer in last season's Champions League - in the 3-1 defeat by Barcelona at the Nou Camp and a brace in the victory away to Bayer Leverkusen by the same scoreline.

And Robson is convinced Ameobi can reproduce that form as Newcastle chase a place in the Champions League group stage and an estimated £15m jackpot.

Robson last night revealed: "The kid needed me. I had him in the office on Monday morning to talk about his game and lift his confidence, because he was down.

"He just needed an arm around his shoulder. It just wasn't his day on Saturday and I can't see a repeat of that.

"He said he didn't feel that great in the match and didn't eat breakfast. With it being a mid-day kick-off, which is outrageous really, the players were sitting down at half past eight in the morning eating pasta and boiled chicken, and Shola couldn't face that.

"He said he felt a bit weak - and he played like he was a bit weak.

"But we like him; we think he's some player. He's made big strides and he's a difficult guy for defenders to handle. He wants to show the public that what they saw on Saturday was not really him.

"We know he didn't do himself justice. He was very disappointed with his performance, but I think we'll see a different Shola.

"If I didn't play him, I think I would knock the kid back. He did well in Europe last season when he stepped in for Alan in the Nou Camp and at Bayer Leverkusen.

"He was champing at the bit when he came on at Leeds the other week; he helped to illuminate our performance.''

Robson believes Shearer needs all the help he can get against Partizan's rugged rearguard, which includes former Derby County defender Taribo West, who once touted himself for a move to Tyneside.

The tie is on a knife-edge, with Newcastle leading 1-0 from the first leg in Serbia a fortnight ago thanks to Nolberto Solano, who returns to the side because of Lee Bowyer's European ban.

Robson said: "They had three tough defenders and Taribo West was a tough diamond and got stuck into Alan.

"But we know he's capable of giving away silly free-kicks, so let's hope he does try to wrestle Alan all over the place because we've got Solano for set-pieces.

"The public out there were volatile and aggressive, but Partizan won't have that this time. We have the advantage.

"It's a massive game for us and it's very important for all sorts of reasons. We have one foot in the door, but the job is only half done.

"I think the defeat on Saturday will help us in a way - it will act as a stimulus.''

As he prepared for his milestone match, 70-year-old Robson said: "It's four years since I came here; 50 games a year, more or less. We've done very well. We finished fourth after three years and third after four years. That's a meteoric rise from where we were when I came here.''