da heads bet： After joining from a relegated Stoke side in the summer of 2018, Xherdan Shaqiri’s move to Liverpool was surely seen as somewhat of a coup by those in the higher circles at Anfield.
da realbet： The Reds had secured a Premier League-proven player for as little as £13m due to his release clause – in this world of ridiculously inflated transfer fees and prices, the finances involved in bringing the Switzerland international to Merseyside felt like a masterstroke from Michael Edwards and co.
But fast forward almost two years later though, and Shaqiri has struggled to really establish himself under Jurgen Klopp. And to be fair to him, it’s hardly his fault either. When you are playing for the reigning Champions League holders, and you’ve got the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane standing in your way on the wing, then there is very little chance of getting regular first-team minutes.
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All in all however, whenever he has played, the Swiss ace hasn’t really given Klopp any food for thought. As a fringe player or a role option, the objective is surely to put in the kind of performances that makes it impossible for the manager to ignore or side-line you for any longer. But in truth, Shaqiri hasn’t done that.
As per Transfermarkt, the now £18m-rated ace has played just 40 times across all competitions, scoring seven times and providing a further five assists. What certainly hasn’t helped his cause is the uncertainty about how he best fits into this Liverpool system of playing a 4-3-3. After all, with Salah and Mane nailed on for the wide roles, his only real hope of a starting berth is from deeper in midfield, but whether he has the defensive abilities to do that is up for debate.
It’s little surprise that Klopp has used him in five different positions in his time at Anfield, whilst the role he has been deployed in the most on the right, is of course occupied by Salah. As per Whoscored, his average match rating in the top-flight this season is a shocking 6.37, which is miles worse than Naby Keita. If Shaqiri is deemed not good enough to really break into the Liverpool first-team, then the Reds should surely look into cutting their losses on him this summer.
That money could then be reinvested into potentially signing someone like Jadon Sancho or Timo Werner, whilst it will also naturally open up a spot in the squad for a young talent coming through. Indeed, Takumi Minamino’s arrival in January has arguably put Shaqiri further down the pecking order, so the time may have come for Liverpool to part ways with the former Stoke ace.
Meanwhile, this Liverpool ace could be looking for an exit.