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What's the story?
Real Madrid midfielder Isco Alarcon has revealed that La Liga rivals Barcelona had tried to sign him this summer. The Catalan club had approached him in an attempt to convince him to cross the divide but the Spaniard had declined their offer.
After renewing his contract, he said that Barcelona had made contact but that he never wanted to leave the capital club.
"There was some contact but I never listened to it," Isco said. "My intention was always to succeed here in a team that had confidence in me.
"I want to consolidate my position as a starter and win many titles. I could have renewed last year but I wanted to be focused on the season, I was always determined to re-sign."
Also read: 5 players who won La Liga with both Real Madrid and Barcelona
In case you didn't know...
The 25-year-old had recently renewed his contract with Real Madrid which will now see him earn €6m per season. His release clause was also increased to an astronomical €700m.
The deal will also see him stay at the Santiago Bernabeu until the end of the 2021/22 season.
The heart of the matter
Prior to his renewal, Isco was in the final year of his contract, allowing him to sign a pre-contract with another club in January 2018. The renewal now gives Zinedine Zidane one less thing to worry about.
The midfielder has played an integral role in securing back-to-back Champions League titles at the club especially after Gareth Bale suffered a number of injuries in the 2016/17 season that kept him out of action for a number of games.
Video: The best of Isco (2016/17)
Author's take
Isco would never have moved to Barcelona, especially with Zidane in charge. He has reiterated time and again how much belief the French manager has in his capabilities and he has been rewarded with ample game time in a squad that has a wealth of attacking talent.
