90min's Our 21: Real Sociedad and Sweden's Alexander Isak

What were you doing when you were 17 years old?

If you're anything like us you'll have been spending your weekends working in a rubbish job for a bit of pocket money while making cameo appearances at college through the week.

Alexander Isak was signing for Borussia Dortmund and had already scored his first international goal...at 17!

Now 21, Isak is currently plying his trade at Real Sociedad and with 17 goals in 34 games this season he's attracting more than his fair share of admiring glances.

So who is the player being linked with a move to Real Madrid and Barcelona? Here's everything you need to know about him...

How he's performed this season

Brilliantly.

The Sweden international struggled to make an impact having moved to Dortmund at such a young age and was shipped off to Real Sociedad in 2019.

After a decent first season where he scored nine goals in 37 league games, the youngster has really hit the ground running in his second campaign with Sociedad, scoring at a ratio of a goal every other game in La Liga as he bagged 17 strikes to finish sixth in the goalscoring chart.

Preferred position

Isak is an out-and-out striker, though one of the best parts about his game is that he can do a bit of everything.

At 6ft 2in he's a pretty big unit so can play as a target man and has the technical ability to keep hold of the ball when it's played into his feet.

While he's an extremely competent focal point to the attack, Isak's real strengths lie in running in behind the backline and he's a great player to have if your side is looking to play on the counter.

Who does he play like? 

Any guesses who the talented Swedish centre-forward has been compared to?

Of course it's Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Isak has all the attributes the Milan frontman has built a career on including a quality touch and good hold up play - we're not saying he's as good as him before you start, just that their styles of play are similar.

Well, who doesn't aspire to be a lion? (Except for everyone over the age of seven).

What his teammates have said

"There are many talented young players, but they usually need time before learning to connect with each other and play like a team. Isak was just 16, but played like a 26-year-old. That was absolutely remarkable."

- Former AIK teammate Nils-Eric Johansson

"He’s a big talent, he has enormous potential. He can become the new Zlatan Ibrahimovic."

- Former AIK teammate Chinedu Obasi

FIFA 21 rating and potential

When you kick off your career mode on FIFA 21, Isak already has a solid rating of 78, though a potential rating of 86 with a four-star skill moves rating making him a must-buy.

Football Manager rating

Everyone loves a wonderkid on Football Manager and Isak is precisely that.

The youngster's physical stats including acceleration, pace and jumping reach are already that sweet, sweet green colour us FM nerds like to see, and with a valuation of just £8m he'll hardly leave you bankrupt if you can lure him away from Real Sociedad.

By the year 2030 his stats look even better and with the right coaching you could have a superstar on your hands.

What boots he'll wear at Euro 2020

Isak is sponsored by adidas and is usually seen wearing the footwear giant's Nemeziz 19.1s, so he's likely to be sporting a similar pair at this summer's delayed Euro 2020 finals.

How involved he'll be at Euro 2020

Isak will undoubtedly be a big part of Janne Andersson's plans at Euro 2020.

It was Andersson who handed the youngster his senior international debut back in 2017 and he's already racked up an impressive 20 caps.

With talisman Ibrahimovic not making the cut due to injury, Sweden are in need of a focal point to their attack and Isak represents their next best option.

The Swedes certainly don't have an easy group but they'll fancy their chances of progressing from a pool containing Spain, Poland and Slovakia, and Isak will no doubt be key to their efforts.