Derby County were linked with a January swoop for the striker before Nottingham Forst got their man.
That Gary Rowett was able to mould Clayton Donaldson into an established second tier centre-forward is testament to his influence on his playing staff. Since arriving at St Andrew’s in 2014, Donaldson scored 26 goals in two seasons for The Blues.
Yet, it wasn’t purely his improved finishing that made him an essential part of Rowett’s game plan. Instead, it was his work rate, his willingness to plough a lone furrow up top, run the channels and hold up play to provide his team-mates with an outlet.
And although his Derby County side have the players and the budget to play a more expansive, attacking style than Rowett’s limited, overachieving Birmingham, you expect that the new man in charge at the iPro will demand the same level of commitment and collective ethic from his charges.
Thankfully, then, Derby didn’t make a January move for exiled Aston Villa forward Ross McCormack. According to the Daily Mail, one of the Championship’s lowest scorers had identified the Scotland striker as a possible solution to their blunt forward line, only for Nottingham Forest to swoop in late in the window.
And while McCormack’s tally of one in six on the other side of the East Midlands, coupled with three in 20 for Aston Villa, suggests he would hardly be the prolific goalscorer Derby are crying out for, it’s his style of play that would have meant he would have struggled to fit Rowett’s gameplan.
The 30-year-old is hardly renowned for his willingness to hassle and harry opponents, let alone chase loose balls. Furthermore, perceived attitude problems at Aston Villa, with Steve Bruce accusing him of missing training and the fall-out from ‘gate-gate’, as reported by The Guardian, will hardly appeal to a manager who prides himself on exacting total commitment from his players.
Though he’s hardly flying at Nottingham Forest, it appears he’s better off in red than white.
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