By the looks of it Newcastle are switching their attentions to the Championship in their hunt for attacking reinforcements with reports suggesting we've opened talks with Leeds captain Ross McCormack. Both the Yorkshire Post and the Shields Gazette have indicated that the Magpies have contacted Leeds this week to check up on the Scotland international's availability following a turbulent campaign in which he scored 29 goals and emerged as a pillar of consistency at at Elland Road. It's understood that McCormack wants a crack at the Premier League as he enters his prime years and that he's already informed the Whites of his desire to leave this summer following the treatment and subsequent departure of manager Brian McDermott. That should prove a strong bargaining chip in our favour given the bizarre £8 million asking price quoted by the Gazette. For a 27-year-old with zero top-flight experience it seems wholly excessive when the market is saturated with younger and relatively inexpensive alternatives. It's a fee we don't envisage Newcastle paying. As a few Toon supporters have pointed out on Twitter this morning the Club could pick up Jordan Rhodes or Danny Ings for a similar fee and and we'd welcome both to St James' Park without question. McCormack, however, has more strings to his bow than the aforementioned duo. Granted, he might struggle to find the net with the regularity he has in the second-tier, but he is a far more technically accomplished and creative forward, evidenced by the nine assists to his name and would add a fresh dimension to our unimaginative attack.
