Ex-Celtic and Liverpool defender reveals Sunderland transfer talks

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has admitted he once had conversations about signing for Sunderland.

Published 4th Nov 2022, 15:27 BST- 1 min read

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The 31-year-old centre-back was on the Black Cats’ radar when Gus Poyet was in charge at the Stadium of Light, but instead made the move from Celtic to Southampton in 2015.

Van Dijk then signed for Liverpool for a reported £75 million in 2018 and has gone on to win the Champions League and Premier League with The Reds.

Speaking on Gary Neville's The Overlap, Van Dijk answered fan questions and was asked if it was true that he'd agreed to sign for Sunderland before leaving Celtic.

Virgil van Dijk playing for Liverpool. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

"Wow. That's unbelievable," van Dijk replied.

"Is that your agent on Twitter asking these questions?!" Neville chipped in.

Van Dijk then added: "I would say there was interest from Sunderland at the time, yes. I didn't sign anything but there were conversations. There was interest, there was interest."

Sunderland Liverpool Celtic Gary Neville Stadium of Light