Source: Northern_Echo
Newcastle’s offer for Beckford is rejected
NEWCASTLE have stepped up their interest in Jermaine Beckford by tabling a £1.25m offer for the striker, but Leeds officials have rejected their opening gambit and insisted their club's leading scorer will not be allowed to leave on the cheap. Magpies chiefs made a firm approach earlier this week in an attempt to tie up a deal before the transfer window officially reopens tomorrow morning. Having tracked 26-year-old Beckford for the best part of two seasons, Newcastle officials finally made formal contact with their counterparts at Elland Road and offered £1.25m for the striker's services. While the London-born forward has scored 19 goals in 27 appearances this season, Magpies owner Mike Ashley is reluctant to pay much more than that for a player who is out of contract in the summer, and would therefore be available for nothing in June. Ashley is also understood to feel that Beckford's lack of Premier League experience should mitigate against a higher fee. Leeds officials feel differently, however, and Newcastle's initial offer was rejected out of hand for being too low. With promotion to the Championship looking likely given the 11-point advantage Leeds currently hold over the play-off positions, manager Simon Grayson is aware of the possible detrimental impact that selling Beckford could have on his side. Leeds owner Ken Bates is understood to share such concerns, and it is expected that the pair will hold out for a fee in excess of £2m. Indeed, Newcastle could have to double their initial offer if they are to prise Beckford from Elland Road during the January transfer window. Newcastle boast alternative transfer targets in attack, including former loanee Marlon Harewood, but Beckford has topped their wanted list for quite a while and they are unlikely to end their interest without a fight. Hughton is desperate to sign a striker next month, and is equally keen to add another centre-half, with Sheffield United's Matt Kilgallon expected to join within the next fortnight. The Magpies manager remains adamant that no one will be leaving St James' Park during the January window, and that even extends to fringe players such as forgotten midfielder Geremi. Geremi has made just three Championship starts this season, and with his contract due to expire next summer, it had been thought that Newcastle could look to engineer a deal that would enable them to remove at least part of the African's £60,000-a-week wage bill from their books. Hughton, however, insists that will not be happening, and claims Geremi remains an integral part of the squad. The Cameroon international links up with his national squad on January 4 ahead of the African Cup of Nations in Angola, but once that tournament is over, he will return to the North-East. At this moment in time, Geremi remains a contracted player here, and I don't see that changing, said Hughton. At present, we're in a fairly healthy position in terms of the squad, and we haven't had too many injuries, particularly in the midfield areas. That has restricted the amount of time Geremi has been on the field, and there have been times when he has found himself out of the 18. But that doesn't mean that he doesn't have a job to do, and it doesn't mean we won't need him in the second half of the season. He's still a player of good quality, and that's why he's been selected to play for his national team. Another midfielder who has not played much this season is Joey Barton, but Hughton is hoping the controversial Liverpudlian will soon be fit to resume training. Barton has not played since injuring his foot in September's 3-1 win over Plymouth, but his recovery is nearing its completion and he could be back in the first-team fold in little more than a month. We're hoping to have Joey back in training round about the third week in January, said Hughton. That's the point where we hope he'll be back training full time. After that, there'll be a period of training and building his fitness back up, but provided there are no setbacks, he'll be available for selection after that.