Newcastle attacker Shola Ameobi was named in Nigeria's preliminary African Cup of Nations roster.

Since then, there have been futile attempts by manager Stephen Keshi to contact Ameobi who made his international debut against Venezuela just two months ago.

Keshi is running out of patience over Ameobi's availability and has given him a Saturday deadline to report to the Eagles camp in Faro.

''Otherwise, we go ahead with other plans for the Nations Cup, with available players on ground,'' says Keshi.

Efe Ambrose, Elderson Echejile, Juwon Oshaniwa and Obiora Nwankwo linked up with the Nigeria squad on Friday afternoon.

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