Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie discusses how close he was to joining Sunderland

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Sunderland boss Jack Ross confirms that he wanted to sign Ryan Christie from Celtic.

Celtic midfielder Ryan Christie has suggested that he was never distracted by links with a move to Sunderland, on the club’s official website.

Sunderland boss Jack Ross confirmed to the Scottish Sun that Christie was on his side’s radar, but they failed to get a deal over the line.

And the midfielder insists that he only ever wanted to play for Celtic.

He said: “There was talk of it but it never came down to a decision. To be honest, I was solely concentrating on Celtic and that’s all I have been doing since I came back from pre-season. I just wanted to see if I could break my way into the squad.

“At the start of the season it was a bit difficult and I couldn’t really find my way in. The manager spoke to me and told me he sees I’ve got a part to play in the squad, so I needed to put my head down and keep working.”

Christie appeared to face a fight to earn a place in Celtic’s first-team at the start of the season, but he has begun to get first team chances under Brendan Rodgers.

Christie came on for Celtic during their 1-0 victory over Rangers, and played the final 15 minutes of the contest.

Sunderland, meanwhile, have not missed Christie too much so far – as they have made a bright start to the campaign.

Ross’ side went into the season as favourites for promotion, and they have lived up to their billing so far, with Sunderland already sitting among the teams challenging at the top of the table.