Fulham striker Ross McCormack says he is motivated to help Fulham return to the Premier League at the first attempt and not by his earnings from his big money move from Leeds.
McCormack scored 29 goals for Leeds last season, but quit the club in the summer after claiming his and the club’s ambitions were moving in opposite directions.
The striker is getting used to his new surroundings at Fulham and says he is enjoying life under new manager Felix Magath.
McCormack said: ‘When I had a chat with the manager and the chief executive in the summer it was all about me coming here and being part of the squad that gets Fulham back to the Premier League.
‘People talk about footballers being motivated by money but I would like to look at it at the end of my career and put my finger on this point where I helped Fulham get back to the Premier League. I will remember that more than what I was earning.
‘Obviously the club paid a bit of money to get me here, so it is always nice for another club to want you that much.
‘With me and Leeds our ambitions were going in different directions.
‘I felt as if my time was up there and I was lucky to have a club like Fulham just coming down from the Premier League who wanted me that much.’
There has been a huge turnover of players at Craven Cottage this summer with a lot of older players like John Arne Riise, Giorgos Karagounis and Brede Hangeland all leaving the club and Magath promoting players from the successful youth academy, and McCormack has been impressed with what he has seen.
The striker added: ‘We have a lot of good kids, Pat Roberts is a special talent.
‘George Williams has surprised me more than most because I did not really know much about him before I came here, but he is a fantastic little player, he’ll play a big part during the season.
‘Moussa (Dembele) will score a few goals and then you have got the obvious like Scott Parker, the captain, who has been around and is a good influence on everyone.’
German manager Magath is well known for his tough training techniques and putting the emphasis on fitness, but McCormack has no complaints.
He added: ‘He is always trying to improve us. He is always on our backs to keep doing more, and if you feel you have no more to give he is trying to find another gear still so it is pretty good to have a manager motivating you that way.
‘Everything has been about professionalism since I have been here, from the training, coming down for meals at the same time and everyone wearing the same gear so it is just professionalism.’
