SAFC made huge £600k blunder over “outstanding” machine who aged like “fine wine” - opinion

Sunderland have had their fair share of transfer successes and disasters over the years as they have felt the wrath of the window as well as the joy of it.

Not all moves work out as it is impossible to guarantee that a player will be able to fit in with the squad and consistently perform on the pitch.

Whilst it is easy to look at the transfers that did happen and judge them, you can also look at prospective switches that didn’t go through in the end.

According to The Sunderland Echo, one player the Black Cats attempted to land was Brad Friedel for £600k in 1995 as Peter Reid looked to snap up the shot-stopper. The move fell through due to a work permit issue, despite him having played for Newcastle’s reserves earlier in 1994.

Instead of moving to Wearside, he sealed a transfer to Turkish giants Galatasaray. The giant kept 15 clean sheets in 37 appearances before moving back to the MLS with Colombus Crew, playing 45 times and keeping 13 clean sheets for the American outfit.

He then found his way to England as he secured a switch to Liverpool in 1997. This suggests that Sunderland did not get in quickly enough as soon as he was eligible for a work permit, as their interest in 1995 indicates that they would have had an advantage over their rivals as they already did their homework on the goalkeeper and had spoken with him previously to agree the £600k transfer.

Friedel endured a mixed time with the Reds as he kept eight shutouts in 31 outings across three seasons. Blackburn snapped him up from Anfield in 2000 and this is where his career exploded as he enjoyed a sublime spell with the Lancashire side. He played a whopping 355 matches for the club and kept the opposition out 118 times in what was a magnificent spell at Ewood