Liverpool star Robertson grateful to 'fantastic' Everton coach Silva

Andy Robertson is grateful to have been coached by Everton boss Marco Silva when he was at Hull City.

Andy Robertson played under Marco Silva at Hull City.

Liverpool full-back Andy Robertson paid tribute to Everton coach Marco Silva before Sunday's Merseyside derby, highlighting the impact he had on his career during their time together at Hull City.

Robertson, 24, joined Hull from Dundee United in January 2014, and by the end of the 2016-17 campaign he was attracting admiring glances from bigger clubs.

It was during that campaign Robertson played under Silva, who arrived at the KCOM Stadium midway through the season to try to save the Tigers from relegation.

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Although Silva was unable to keep Hull up, he was praised for making a strong impact with his style of play and nearly steering them out of trouble when they previously appeared to have little chance.

Robertson secured a reported £8 million move to Liverpool ahead of the 2017-18 season and has gone from strength to strength, and he thanked Silva after the Reds' dramatic 1-0 win at Anfield in December.

"It was obviously a short conversation," Robertson told The Guardian. "Our manager was celebrating on the pitch and Marco was obviously gutted at the way the match had been won, of course he was.

"It was probably not the best time to speak to anyone from the losing side after a derby like that, but I have respect for him and I'd like to think he has respect for me as well.

"I gave him everything for the six months he was at Hull. So, I just went over and said thanks. I could see he was gutted, but he came over and shook my hand and it was appreciated.

"He was big for me. When he came in he improved us all at Hull, you could see that by the results we got.

"We fell short in the end, but he was the one who gave us a chance, a fantastic manager who did a lot of good things. It was the first time I had worked for a foreign manager, so that stood me in good stead too.

"It probably helped me settle in a bit when I came to Liverpool. Marco does his research on every opponent, in fact he is probably telling Everton all about me right now.

"At Hull he worked individually with all the players and brought me on a lot defensively. He is someone I will always think kindly of, even if he is now with the local rivals."