The first version of this article appeared in March 2020.
It was the most successful birthday in football.
Alexander Isak made sure that the big derby between Djurgarden and AIK was remembered.
In the first half, the teenage sensation made a run into space and was able to control a through ball in the box. One touch to take it into his stride and another to fire low and hard into the far corner. He was in front of a hostile crowd.
After the break, he stole into a scoring position with perfect timing and added a brilliant headed goal to give his club a 2-0 lead and send his fans wild with joy. A win over bitter rivals kept the title dream alive.
Chinedu Obasi was the Nigerian who netted the third goal. He could become Sweden's new Zlatan Ibrahimovich if things go well.
The comparison hasn't changed. The Spanish press described Isak as close to joining Real Madrid in January of last year. Isak moved to a new team after the reports were incorrect. The same old nickname was repeated for the first time when he joined Real Sociedad.
Isak made a huge difference. His best performance in his first season was at Real Madrid, where they defeated San Sebastian 4-3 in the Spanish Cup. Isak had two goals and an assist.
He came on as a second-half substitute, assisted again and scored the winner in a derby victory over Athletic Bilbao, his sixth game in a row.
Three successful seasons in Spain and a £60m price tag suggest that the 22-year-old is going to be a major star for years to come.
He is tall and has great technical ability. His skill set is similar to that of Ibrahimsson. The comparison is completely incorrect in terms of their personality and playing style. They are not the same.
Isak and Nahom Ghidey are both of Eritrean origin, and they had a special bond.
Alexander's parents came to Sweden in the 1980's to escape the civil war and he was always close to the Eritean culture.
"Eritreans are proud, strong and patriotic, and that background was influential." Alexander has received a lot of love and support from his family.
The mixture of Swedish and Eritrean cultures produced a footballer.
Isak's background and upbringing were crucial to forming his character. His settled, stable childhood was completely different to Ibrahimovic's, where his parents divorced before he was two years old.
Isak is calm, modest and down to earth if he is Ibrahimovic. He is a man who tries to keep his distance from the media. He wants to play the ball as quickly as possible.
The legendary ex-AIK captain, who played alongside Isak in his breakthrough 2016 season, says Alexander was mature.
Many talented young players need time to learn to connect with each other and play together as a team. Isak was just 16 years old. That was quite amazing.
Isak does not want to make a show. On and off the field, he's the same person. It is possible that arrogance could have aided him.
Isak's attitude and style stood out, according to the journalist. He read the game better than anyone, even though his shots were not particularly powerful. He didn't dribble just to impress. He does everything for a reason. His game is easy to play.
Just 11 months after his senior debut, Isak was already being lined up for a move abroad. It's easy to understand why he didn't sign for Real Madrid.
Isak might have remembered the mistakes of Martin Odegaard, the Norwegian who joined Real in 2015 at the age of 16 only to be labelled as a failure, when he made his decision. When Odegaard was on loan from Madrid, they were team-mates.
He explained in his first interview in Germany that he had some offers on the table, but decided to join the team. I would like to get some playing time and help the team.
The decision that looked like a very smart one soon proved to be wrong. The club went through four coaches while he was there. They didn't trust the young Swedish.
The youngster only played in four of the five matches after being a late substitute. Isak was demoted to the reserves in the second half of the year.
Spox journalist Jochen Tittmar says it's a mystery. It's not clear why Isak didn't get a chance at a club that promotes young players.
It was strange from the beginning because Tuchel admitted that he wasn't involved in the transfer and didn't know the player well. It's hard to think of other examples of players who were discarded but went on to make a living.
Imagine Ibrahimovic in such circumstances. There might well have been big headlines and angry quotes would on a daily basis. Isak was silent. Even now he doesn't have a single bad word to say about Dortmund. "I didn't have a lot of time on the pitch, but I became a better player," he said in a Mundo Deportivo interview.
Amos Pieper has some information on how Isak dealt with the mystery. The young centre-back played with the Swede for the reserves and is now doing well with the second division team.
Alexander is a fantastic player, he possesses amazing technique, is strong and fast, and everyone saw that. He says that they expected him to get an opportunity.
He failed to score in the only game he played. It's difficult for young players when things aren't going as well as they would like. He never spoke about the situation. He was late to work more often after training. He was very focused and focused on the task at hand.
Isak was given a loan to Willem II in the beginning of 2019. He scored 13 goals in 16 Eredivisie matches and helped the small club reach the cup final, where they lost to the big boys. His attitude was not changed by success.
"It was a historic season for Willem II, and Isak was the poster boy for that," says Dolf van Aert, a Dutch journalist who interviewed Isak for Voetbal International.
He was not arrogant at all. He told me that he doesn't like being compared to Zlatan.
Isak is said to be confident in a positive way. Fran Sol had just left the club and the new loanee needed to fill his shoes. He would help a lot.
He can be used in any system. It's good to play possession football and counter- attacks. Most of his shots are on target and he can finish with both feet. It appears that he doesn't feel any pressure during the matches.
He was a member of the group in the dressing room. He likes jokes just as much as anyone else.
Even though there was a brilliant spell in the Netherlands, it didn't change their minds. The German club didn't plan on using Isak, so they sold him to Real Sociedad in the summer of 2019.
With Norwegian wonder kid Erling Haaland becoming a sensation and since moving on to Manchester City, the Bundesliga side are unlikely to have regrets, but they missed out on a player who could have become a major star at Westfalenstadion.
Isak signed a five-year contract at Real Sociedad with a release clause of 70m euros and a buy-back option of 30m euros, but that was irrelevant as far as he was concerned.
My future is not my past. He said that the Spanish league suits him and his style of play.
He is the opposite of Isak, who spent three years in the Basque Country and scored 44 goals.
He was the top scorer in Real Sociedad's first season in the competition and helped secure three top-six finishes in his time there.
If he repeats a trick at St James' Park, he will go down in folklore.
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