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Obertan: 'I'll Keep On Fighting'
Written by Newcastle Utd
Gabriel Obertan is refusing to give up in his fight for a regular starting spot, after firing Newcastle to victory against Brugge
By Anthony Marshall - Newcastle United Club Reporter
Europa League star Gabriel Obertan is refusing to give up in his fight for a regular starting spot, after firing Newcastle to victory on Thursday night.
The Frenchman drove home just three minutes into the second half, and that proved to be enough to secure a 1-0 Group D win over Club Brugge at St. James' Park.
Obertan's pace and trickery on the right flank was a constant threat to the Belgian outfit all evening, as he and United's other squad players gave manager Alan Pardew a reminder of their qualities.
And the 23-year-old knows he has to keep producing whenever called upon if he is to win a place in the Magpies' line-up week in, week out.
"For a lot of the players tonight, we don't get to play much in the Premier League so we really wanted to show the gaffer we could have a starting position in the league," Obertan told nufc.co.uk in an exclusive interview.
"It's been a while that I have been pushing for a first-team place. I feel like in the Europa League I have done really well, but I still work hard anyway and I am not going to give up.
"It's about training, games and the time I get in the Premier League. I will show the manager. I trust myself.
"(The goal) was good and it was my first goal at St. James' so that feels good for my confidence. For an offensive player like myself it was great.
"It was a good move. Sammy (Ameobi) managed to keep the ball, did some tricks and I was in the right position at the right time.
"I had some time on the ball which is sometimes quite hard, but I had the coolness to finish it."
Newcastle's margin of victory could have been even greater, but Papiss Cisse was denied by a couple of top class saves from Brugge stopper Bojan Jorgacevic.
However, it wasn't all one way traffic as the visitors could have grabbed a share of the spoils on a couple of occasions.
In the end United ground out another win, and for Obertan it was all about the points, not performance.
"All we wanted was the three points and to stay on top of the group, and we did that.
"It was a tough game but we expected that. We knew it would be different to Bordeaux, but we approached it in the right way and achieved what we set out for."
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