Newcastle are the latest club to show an interest in Marseille's Ghanaian winger Andre Ayew.
Ayew has been linked with Liverpool, Inter Milan and Napoli this summer despite Marseille insisting that the player is not for sale.
But reports in France now suggest that Newcastle hope to entice Ayew to England before the end of the transfer window.
According to Le10Sport, Newcastle are set to turn to Ayew after failing in their bid for Marseille's French international striker Andre-Pierre Gignac and hope a bid of £8.5m may be sufficient to bring the player to St James' Park.
Ayew has a buy-out clause of £15.5m but the Magpies but Marseille reportedly now consider the clause obsolete and are willing to consider offers of less than that fee.
Earlier this summer Marseille boss Elie Baup seemed to rule out a move away for Ayew despite disagreeing with the 23-year-old about his best position, saying: "Let me be clear: I am counting on all the players who are here."
Ayew continues to feature in wide positions for Marseille despite a preference for playing as a central striker.
Despite featuring in 35 games last season, scoring nine goals, it is thought that the player would be interested in a move away in a bid to fully realise his potential.