David Moyes has revealed that Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Cesc Fabregas and Toni Kroos were his transfer targets when taking over at Manchester United - and he believes he would still be in charge had he landed them.

The Sunderland boss returns to Old Trafford for the first time on Boxing Day since he was unceremoniously sacked in April 2014, just 10 months after replacing Sir Alex Ferguson and signing a six-year deal.

Moyes, though, endured a frustrating first summer and, after Bale joined Real Madrid and Fabregas remained at Barcelona, he made just one signing - the £27.5million deadline-day acquisition of his former Everton midfielder Marouane Fellaini.

David Moyes succeeded Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford in 2013 - he lasted 10 months

Moyes returns to Old Trafford as Sunderland manager on Boxing Day

A deal for Bayern Munich playmaker Toni Kroos was then agreed in January on the understanding he would join at the end of the season, while Ferguson told Moyes that Ronaldo was open to a return.

But the Scot failed to sign any of those marquee names and has been left to reflect on a case of what might have been.

‘When I first went in my real target was Gareth Bale. I felt all along that he was a Manchester United player,’ said Moyes, who left with United seventh in the Premier League.

‘I fought right until the last minute. We actually offered a bigger deal than Real Madrid. But Gareth had his mind made up on going to Madrid. That was, in my mind, the player I really wanted to bring to Manchester United.

‘The other one was Cesc Fabregas, who we thought we would get right up until the last minute.

‘And I remember when I first met Sir Alex, he always said there was a chance Ronaldo might come back.

Moyes insists that Gareth Bale was a player he wanted to sign for United

Moyes had to settle for towering Belgium midfielder Marouane Fellaini

MOYES AT UNITED Appointed: July 1, 2013 Sacked: April 22, 2014 Games in charge: 51 Wins: 26; Defeats: 15 Trophies: 2013 Community Shield Advertisement

‘So that was the level we were targeting. I was not going out to bring in seven, eight players, because we had a squad which had just won the league.

‘I wanted to give those players a chance to show what they could do and gradually make changes as I went along, not make wholesale changes.

'But there were also top players coming near the end of their career who had to be moved on, and that’s not easy.'

Moyes himself brokered the deal for Kroos and persuaded the Germany star to sign during a private meeting in Munich.

‘Toni Kroos was agreed to come in the summer. I had agreed it with Toni himself and his agent,’ he said.

‘But sometimes you don’t get deals done. Gareth Bale we were probably behind all along, Real Madrid were well in for it.

‘The Cesc one was disappointing. It was very close. And Toni Kroos came up in January - it was done.

‘So I think that, given time and having got to this period, I would have hoped I would be working with a successful team now.’

Moyes adds that Sir Alex Ferguson always said there was a chance Cristiano Ronaldo could return to Manchester United

Toni Kroos, the Germany international, was also a target of the Scottish manager

Moyes has seen both Louis van Gaal and current boss Jose Mourinho struggle at Old Trafford since his sacking, and he says that is proof of the difficulty of the job.

‘There have been two very successful managers go in there and you can see how tough they are finding it as well,’ said Moyes.

‘I feel like I had my chance to do it and I had to do it in my time. But I believed I had longer - I didn’t believe I had to do it in nine months, or even 12 months. I was given plenty of reassurances.