Peter Reid once almost signed legendary 496-goal striker for Sunderland
Sunderland have possessed some outstanding goalscorers over the years, but they could have had one of the world’s best.
Kevin Phillips, Jermain Defoe, and Darren Bent are just three examples of top-quality strikers to have blessed the Stadium of Light turf.
Wilson Isidor has already bagged two Premier League goals this season and will be looking to replicate the Black Cats’ former heroes.
However, it could have been oh so different if Peter Reid had landed his target before he became a modern-day legend.
Sunderland tried to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic twice
Granit Xhaka was among the high-profile signings at Sunderland this summer, highlighting just how far the North East club have come.
During their previous Premier League spell, the Wearsiders were able to pull some significant names, including John O’Shea, Asamoah Gyan, and Danny Welbeck.
However, the biggest name by far would have been Sweden legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic during Reid’s tenure as manager.
The 69-year-old is widely regarded as the Wearsiders’ greatest manager of modern times due to his success in the Premier League.
- Ibrahimovic scored 496 club goals in his career
- He won the FIFA Puskas award for his goal against England in 2013
- Scored 62 goals in 122 international matches
“I liked his physique and I liked his feet,” Reid told the Daily Mail in 2017.
“I tried. I tried. When he was at Malmo I tried to get him but he went to Ajax. We were at Roker Park, but no chance. I didn’t have that clout to attract him.
“When he was at Ajax, we’d moved to the Stadium of Light so I went over, had a meeting. I thought I had a chance, but no. We offered £6million which was decent dough, but they wanted more. I saw him walk past and he smiled. But no conversation.”
Read more: Sunderland’s best-ever deadline day signings: Amad Diallo and Liverpool loan star
Why Peter Reid is Sunderland’s best manager of recent times
While he was unable to land Ibrahimovic, Reid can be forgiven as he gave Sunderland supporters some incredible memories.
The Huyton-born man delivered two second-tier titles, winning the 1998/99 title with 105 points.
During his spell as a Premier League manager, Reid won the Manager of the Month award twice, highlighting his immense impact.
Regis Le Bris was nominated for the Premier League award and would be the first Black Cats boss to receive the prize since Reid.
Remarkably, the 69-year-old guided the Wearsiders to two successive seventh-place finishes in 1999/00 and 2000/01.
While they may not match the feat this season, it promises to be the best campaign in the North East club’s recent history.
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