The surprise Newcastle striker Nile Ranger was urged to copy amid Michael Owen admission

Former Newcastle United manager Chris Hughton urged Nile Ranger to follow the example of fellow academy striker Wesley Ngo Baheng, according to the French forward himself. Ranger made his black-and-white debut at the age of 18, but his career was dogged by problems off the pitch and was released after five years with the club.

The 30-year-old now plays for National League outfit Boreham Wood following similar spells at Blackpool, Southend United and Swindon Town. Ranger also spent time in prison after confessing to online banking fraud, and spent more than two years without a professional contract.

The striker signed for the Magpies in 2008 following an approach from director of football Dennis Wise, and was included in the matchday squad for a clash at Arsenal under Kevin Keegan. However, it was Chris Hughton who would give Ranger his first-team debut the following season in the Championship.

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Ngo Baheng's suffered a cruciate ligament injury during his time at Newcastle and left without making a senior competitive appearance. However, reflecting upon his time with the club, the striker was asked about Ranger and discussed how many chances he was given to salvage his career on Tyneside.

He told Newcastle Fans TV : "You know what is crazy? I think I'm three years older than Nile, and Chris kept saying to Nile 'look, be as good as Wes in terms of attitude'.

"Like me, when you're coming from rough areas, the problem is you want to keep that attitude so people from your hometown can say he hasn't changed, he's still one of us. I think that Nile took this too seriously.

"I used to get on very well with him because we came