‘We tried to keep them’: Owner of club reveals his two players will join Liverpool

The owner of Sunderland, Stewart Donald, has suggested that two of the club’s prospects are on their way to Liverpool after being ‘poached’ by the Premier League runners-up.

The Black Cats have been struggling financially ever since they were relegated from the top flight of English football a couple of years ago and selling players has become necessary.

Having done business with Liverpool in previous years, Sunderland look to be on the verge of striking another transfer deal which would see a pair of their bright talents move to the Anfield club.

After losing to Charlton Athletic in the League One play-off final, the Black Cats have another summer of rebuilding to do and selling some players will be part of that process.

Following Sunderland’s loss, Stewart Donald admitted that the club would let two of their starlets join Jurgen Klopp’s side this summer as he complained about their players being ‘poached’.

“We are having our players poached. There are two players who will go to Liverpool,” Donald told Roker Report

“We tried to keep them. We said to the parents ‘If you really want to go you have to put it in writing’. The parents have written in and said ‘Thank you Sunderland, we want our lads to go to Liverpool’.

“We could turn around and make that awkward and then they will go in the summer anyway.

“Or we can talk to Liverpool and try and get sell-ons, which they don’t have to give us. Both of those lads, because of the relationship we’ve got with Liverpool which could see some players come in the other direction, we’ve opted for a good working relationship (with).

“We’ve asked them if they will stay and they said no. So we made a commercial decision to try and get the best arrangement.”

Liverpool have recently been linked to Sunderland’s young goalkeeper Luke Hewitson (HITC) but it is yet to be revealed whom the two players that Donald is speaking of are.