However, the Sweden international ultimately made a £63 million (€72m/$83m) move to Newcastle United instead.
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"Then there have been players which had been able to come but it was not possible, " Planes said.
"I remember the case of Isak, a player who I particularly liked a lot. I saw him as a striker with a Barca profile, a very associative striker, a striker with a lot of mobility.
"I liked him a lot at Real Sociedad. I would say to you that we were also very, very, very, close at the time, very close. But it was not to be."