Sunderland AFC: David Moyes reveals failed Andy Robertson transfer swoop | OneFootball

David Moyes tried to sign Andy Robertson during his time as Sunderland manager

Former Sunderland boss David Moyes has revealed that he thought he had completed a deal to bring Andy Robertson to the Stadium of Light back in 2017.

The Scotsman spent a single sorry season on Wearside during the 2016/17 campaign, where the Black Cats were relegated to the Championship without so much as a whimper, amassing just 24 points and losing on 26 occasions.

His short-lived tenure was synonymous with high-profile failings in the transfer market, some of which left Sunderland to pick up the pieces and pay the price long after his departure. Notably, Didier Ndong and Papy Djilobodji arrived in the North East for £13.6 million and £8 million respectively, though they both failed to come close to ever justifying that level of investment.

Perhaps, with the exception of Paddy McNair, Moyes conducted rather disastrous business in the transfer market and it's really no surprise that Sunderland soon succumbed to the drop under his stewardship.

However, Moyes himself has now revealed that he plotted a move for Andy Robertson, who was with relegation rivals Hull City at the time but has since managed to forge out a glittering career in the very highest echelons of world football with Liverpool after completing an £8 million switch in the summer of 2017.

David Moyes' Sunderland, Andy Robertson transfer revelation

Moyes, who was invited as a guest on the latest episode of The Overlap podcast, revealed that he thought he had successfully struck a deal to sign the left-back during his time at Sunderland.

Moyes said: "Andy Robertson, if you remember, left Scotland, Queen’s Park, to go to Hull City [sic]. I actually thought I’d done a deal to get him to come to Sunderland.

"I was the manager at Sunderland at the time, and I met his agents and tried to sort out a deal to get him to come from Hull to Sunderland, but at that time, Hull and Sunderland were both near the bottom of the league and in competition, so we didn’t get him.

"But there’s a million hard luck stories in football."

Sunderland will wonder what could've been amid Andy Robertson, Liverpool evidence

Moyes made some calamitous signings at Sunderland, but everything suggests that the attempted acquisition of Robertson could've proved an extremely successful one. Of course, there's no telling how the Scotsman would've fared in a side which was so beleaguered and went down without a fight, but Sunderland must still wonder what could've been.

Few ever dared to anticipate Robertson transforming into one of the best left-sided full-backs in world football across such a sustained period of time, but that's exactly what he's done at Liverpool.

The 78-cap Scotland international has won everything in sight, lifting the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup alongside other honours during an illustrious stay with the Reds, which is still going ever so strong at the age of 30.

In tandem with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Robertson has helped to redefine the role of a modern-day left-back, with his dynamic overlapping running and pinpoint crossing ability earmarking him as the top-flight's leading player in his position for several years.