Klopp: We wanted to sign Isco, Thiago

Borussia Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp has revealed he wanted to sign Isco and Thiago Alcantara in the close-season, but missed out.

Dortmund’s scouting network is renowned and Klopp has admitted he cast his eye over both Spaniards as he formed his pre-season plans.

The Bundesliga runners-up could not compete on a financial basis in the race to sign Isco though, who went to Real Madrid, while Thiago moved to Dortmund’s rivals Bayern Munich.

Klopp will now turn his attention elsewhere and has several attackers that he wants to sign, with Porto’s Colombian forward Jackson Martinez being one of them.

“We also thought about signing Isco. We are not stupid. We had a look at Thiago Alcantara as well. We saw all of them,” Klopp told Kicker .

“It was pretty clear that we would not stand a chance in the race for Isco’s signature, though.

“I have a number of attackers in my mind, but I don’t know whether we can realistically sign any of them.

“Jackson has a lot of qualities that make him an interesting striker. He holds up the ball very well, scores a lot of goals and is always available to receive the ball.”

Martinez is contracted to Porto until 2016 and scored 31 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions last season.