ALWAYS one to voice his frustration when named as a substitute in the past, Alan Shearer is ready to accept the support role on a more frequent basis this season.

The problem with his admission is that Newcastle have no-one to fill the talismanic captain's boots. Nicolas Anelka is favourite but a breakdown over the transfer fee is threatening to scupper any deal.

But Shearer, the man to score the 193rd and 194th goals of his Magpies career to complete the comfortable aggregate win over Dubnica on Saturday, wants a fresh face as soon as possible.

The former England striker turns 35 just days before the opening Premiership game at Arsenal on August 13 and, having postponed retirement for one more year, knows being Mr Dependable in front of goal will be a lot more difficult to maintain.

Shearer is not expecting to work wonders for Newcastle anymore, and he doesn't want to talk about breaking Jackie Milburn's 200-goal record until it happens, but the onus is massively still with him as he is the only fit striker at the club.

Newcastle without Shearer leading the line at the moment would be like a Tall Ship without any sails, and Souness knows that. But the skipper wants his rest this season.

"When I sat down with the chairman and the manager before I signed my contract, I was fully aware I wouldn't be playing every single game this year. That's physically impossible for me because of what has gone on before," said Shearer, referring to the serious knee injuries he has overcome during his career.

"To keep me fit and sharp, and hopefully scoring goals, I understand I will not be able to play every game. With a bit of luck we will get some more ammunition.

"It does mean a change. With the injuries I have had and, hopefully, the games we will have it will be impossible to play them all. I would love to play every game but it just won't happen.

"I'm accepting that and I'm looking forward to that.

"It won't be hard to sit out if the team is winning. This club is more important than any individual."

The new formation Souness is testing out in pre-season could actually help Shearer's chances of playing more games.

With him operating as a lone striker, he has two younger men doing the majority of his running outside the penalty area.

At Highbury, if the manager gets his way, they will be Luis Boa Morte and Kieron Dyer. But James Milner and Charles N'Zogbia were asked to do that against Dubnica and neither let themselves down.

Milner, in particular, became a more influential figure as the game went on and it was from his corner on 71 minutes that led to Shearer opening the scoring with a bullet header that goalkeeper Dusan Pernis could do little about.

Newcastle's legendary forward added his second in injury-time when he rose inside the box to deliver another trademark header beyond Pernis after Stephen Carr's pinpoint cross.

If there was doubt about Shearer's goal in Dubnica, when he tried to claim one when he attempted to get a touch on a deflected cross before it crossed the line, there was no such uncertainty about either of these.

Progress through to the Intertoto Cup semi-final was achieved in first gear and without being seriously tested against the Slovakian minnows.

But there will be no room for sloppiness or taking victory for granted in the next round against Deportivo La Coruna, where they play the first leg on Wednesday night.

But Shearer pointed out that new signings are a priority if Premiership fortunes are not going to be affected by a UEFA Cup push, if they qualify.

"The UEFA Cup will not be a distraction if the manager can get the players he wants," said Shearer. "It was our downfall last season when we picked up suspensions and injuries. That cost us.

"We don't want to be caught in the same trap again. That's the reason why he is trying to bring some big name players in.

"Last season's UEFA Cup (when they lost to Sporting Lisbon in the quarter-final) was the biggest disappointment of my career, by a million miles.

"It will be difficult this time to get into it, with La Coruna next for us. They were in the semi-final of the Champions League two years ago and we were in the semi of the UEFA Cup. It just shows how quickly things can change in football."

Newcastle fielded a stronger side to the one that gained a 3-1 advantage from the first leg. Jermaine Jenas, Carr, Lee Bowyer and Shay Given all came in to add that first team feel to things, even if it was in front of 27,000 empty seats.

Those supporters that did pay the money to watch had little to cheer about until Shearer's brace. In fact there will be every chance many of those were asleep by the time Newcastle got going.

There were a couple of half chances for both sides. Most notably Jenas' first half free-kick which rocketed off the cross bar and a header from the same player that was well saved by Pernis.

But to see Dubnica complete a simple return pass was the best on offer for much of the game - and Newcastle weren't much better.

Shearer, who also hit the bar with a header late on, is not reading too much into this encounter. "We have not been able to use Scott Parker, Kieron Dyer, Emre and one or two others," he said.

"We have just done enough but, without a shadow of a doubt, bigger tests are ahead for us."

By the time the Premiership campaign kicks-off, with a possible four games to play before he can even think about having a rest, Shearer could have surpassed Milburn's 200-goal club record at this rate. But we're not talking about that are we Alan?