SUNDERLAND are planning an ambitious swoop for Cardiff City striker Cameron Jerome this weekend.

The 19-year-old striker, a former Middlesbrough trainee, has been attracting attention from both Premier League and Championship clubs and Sheffield United placed a £1.3m bid with the Bluebirds late last week - only to see it turned down.

Charlton Athletic are believed to be lining up an increased £1.5m offer with both Liverpool and Leeds United monitoring the situation.

The cash-strapped Cats are in no position to pay £2m up front, so are likely to offer misfiring striker Andy Gray as part-payment.

Cardiff manager Dave Jones has prepared for the inevitable loss of his burgeoning frontman, and added out-of-contract Darlington striker Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu to his ranks on Thursday in a bid to soften the blow.

The Bluebirds boss insists he wants to keep his leading scorer, but revealed only last week that the club, who are £30m in debt, would find it hard to refuse a substantial offer for his talented striker and it is believed a £2m fee would prize the player away from Ninian Park.

"Every footballer has his price," said Jones. "If a Premier League club comes calling it is very difficult to keep hold of any young player.

"I would prefer to add to the squad, but to do that I may have to let one or two players go as I will need to generate money in order to spend."

Mick McCarthy, while backing his strikers to start scoring sooner rather than later, yesterday refused to speculate on a move for Jerome ahead of his side's FA Cup third round tie against Conference North outfit Northwich Victoria, but admitted: "I am actively trying to bring players in. We haven't got the biggest squad and we need to add to it."

The Black Cats boss knows Jones well and this could swing any move in McCarthy's favour.

But, with only £1m to spend in the January transfer window, any move would involve a player plus cash deal and striker Gray, a midweek target for Norwich City, will be reluctantly used by McCarthy as a makeweight in the move.

Sunderland have performed admirably in a large majority of Premiership fixtures this term but an inability to score at crucial times when they've been on top has largely contributed to their Premiership flop.

Jonathan Stead has yet to open his account since his £1.8m transfer from Blackburn Rovers, Gray has netted only once, on the opening day of the season, and both Stephen Elliott and Anthony Le Tallec have managed just two league goals each.

Survival in the Premiership may look bleak but Jerome could offer the Black Cats a glimmer of hope, although McCarthy would largely see his acquisition as one for the club's long-term future.

The teenage striker, who is expected to line up for his club against Arsenal at Highbury this afternoon, making him ineligible for any future FA Cup ties should Sunderland progress past Northwich, has netted on 13 occasions for Cardiff this term and 20 times in 51 starts overall.

Jerome first caught the eye of McCarthy last season when the Wearsiders enjoyed a 2-0 triumph in the Welsh capital, and in the return Championship victory at the Stadium of Light.

Although Sunderland won at a canter, the Huddersfield-born frontman was a handful for both skipper Gary Breen and Stephen Caldwell and would be a welcome addition for a side which has netted in only 15 of their 20 Premier League fixtures.

Meanwhile, Carl Robinson's permanent move to Norwich City has been put in jeopardy after the Welsh international punctured a lung in the Canaries 3-0 defeat at Preston.

The on-loan midfielder, who has made seven appearances for the East Anglian club since leaving Sunderland in November, is expected to be sidelined for a month.

Norwich boss Nigel Worthington said: "He spent a night in hospital after taking another knock in his ribs, which caused a problem with one of his lungs which was not inflating to its full capacity.

"He's out now and is making nice progress but you are looking at a spell of at least a month on the sidelines.

"It was a brave decision to play on his part because he had a couple of cracked ribs and unfortunately he has finished up with a more serious situation, but thankfully it's under control and the lung appears to be getting back to normal.

"He will stay with us on loan - and we'll try and sort something with Sunderland during the transfer window."

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