And more significantly, the player and his advisors believe a move to St James’ Park would be beneficial for a career that has stalled in recent years.

Manchester-born Morrison is willing to relocate to the North East and, while he has a history of trouble with the police, sources close to the player claim he is more misunderstood than a trouble-maker.

“Ravel has got plenty to prove and Newcastle have got nothing to lose.

“This deal potentially works for everybody,” a source close to Morrison told The Journal.

“Ravel is just desperate to play first-team football at a big club and Newcastle certainly qualify on that front.”

Morrison can play either as a midfielder or a striker but is most at home in a ‘number ten’ role – a position that Wayne Rooney currently holds for Manchester United.

It is a measure of his ability that the current champions may yet re-initiate contract talks in an attempt to re-sign him.

Newcastle publicly stated that they would not looking for a striker in the January transfer window, but are keeping their options open for the remainder of this month.

Although they will not sign anyone over 27 and established names seem to be off the agenda, money is available for the ‘right’ deal.

United’s approach is that if a player’s value increases as soon as Newcastle sign them, it makes business-sense. Yohan Cabaye and Cheik Tiote both qualified on that front.

Other targets are being considered. Enquiries have been made about Crystal Palace’s Wilfred Zaha and Paris Saint Germain’s Mevlut Erdinc, but it is Morrison who would potentially represent one of the biggest coups of the Mike Ashley era.