Germany legend Toni Kroos has disclosed how close he came to joining Manchester United - only for the deal to collapse when David Moyes was dismissed whilst negotiations were ongoing. Moyes had been handpicked as Sir Alex Ferguson's successor at Old Trafford following the Scottish manager's retirement in 2013.

The former Everton boss endured a turbulent spell at United and was ultimately dismissed after merely 10 months at the helm. However, before his departure, the Scotsman had been actively pursuing reinforcements for his squad. Widely considered amongst the elite midfielders of his era, securing Kroos would have represented a major statement signing for United. The German international was just 24 at the time and plying his trade with Bayern Munich.

Reports suggested he was prepared to make the switch to the Premier League under Moyes' stewardship. However, Kroos' career path took a dramatically different direction when United's decision to dismiss Moyes was communicated whilst he was sitting down with the midfielder.

Speaking to SPORT1, Kroos said: "In 2014, before I signed with Real Madrid, I had already agreed with Manchester United. That would have been a move from Bayern to United. But then they kicked out David Moyes, who I was still sitting on my couch with in Munich and hired Louis van Gaal. Then we both declined with thanks."

Kroos made the move to Madrid under the management of Carlo Ancelotti, where he amassed an impressive trophy haul including five Champions Leagues, five Club World Cups, four UEFA Super Cups, four La Liga titles, one Copa del Rey and four Spanish Super Cups.

However, Kroos wasn't the only big-name player that eluded Moyes. The former West Ham boss also missed out on securing Gareth Bale and Cesc Fabregas during his tenure at United.

Moyes said in 2016: "When I first went in to United my real target was Gareth Bale. I felt all along that Gareth Bale was a Manchester United player and I fought to get him [from Tottenham ] right up until the last minute.

"We actually offered him a bigger deal than Real Madrid but Gareth had his mind made up on going to Madrid. He was, though, in my mind, the player I really wanted.

"The other one I came really close to getting was Cesc Fabregas, who we thought we would get [from Barcelona ] right up until the last minute. And Sir Alex [Ferguson] had told me there was always a chance Cristiano Ronaldo might come back from Real Madrid."