Sunderland have ‘reluctantly’ accepted midfielder Josh Robertson’s wishes to move on from the Academy of Light after the 18-year-old ended a 10-year stay with the club to complete a move to Brighton & Hove Albion.

Robertson completed a deal on the south coast ahead of January’s transfer deadline for an undisclosed fee with the teenager stating his unwillingness to sign a professional contract at the Stadium of Light despite featuring for both the club’s under-18s and 21s this season.

Robertson has penned a three-and-a-half-year deal at the Amex Stadium and will join Brighton’s under-21s squad with Sunderland’s academy manager Robin Nicholls pleased the club have been able to play an ‘integral role’ in Robertson’s development over the last decade.

“Josh’s scholarship was due to expire at the end of this season and after indicating that he did not wish to commit his future to SAFC, we reluctantly accepted to pursue the next-best solution for the club and the player,” said Nicholls.

“We are disappointed that Josh will be departing the group, as he is a player with potential that we hoped could eventually progress into our senior team, but we wish him well for the future and are proud to have played an integral role in his development.”

Brighton’s under-21s head coach Shannon Ruth said: "We're delighted to welcome Josh to the club and are looking forward to working with him.

"He's had a really good education with Sunderland, which was rewarded with his Premier League 2 debut earlier this season.

"He's demonstrated his ability to play in a variety of attacking roles, while also showing his goalscoring threat. We believe he will fit in well with our style of play which will also allow him to show his strengths.

“He will join our under-21 squad and we are excited to see how he progresses in our environment."