Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce admits they made an attempt to bring Robin van Persie back to England.
The former Manchester United and Arsenal striker has left Fenerbahce for Feyenoord.
And Bruce said: “He was wanting to come out of Turkey. We looked at it and thought long and hard.
“Let's be fair, it's not often you get the availability of someone like Robin van Persie.
“I just decided that it was better that we look elsewhere. We wish him the best of luck.
“It was an interesting couple of days."