For six months prior to his move to Bayern Munich, I repeatedly argued (in various articles) that Liverpool should sign Xherdan Shaqiri from Basel. I still maintain he would've been a fantastic signing for the club, but as is often the case these days, the Reds failed to act, and the opportunity vanished. Well, it appears that the collapse of the Henrikh Mkhitaryan deal could lead to the club getting second chance to sign the 21-year old attacker, and this time, Liverpool should take it.
Multiple sources in the Germany and the UK (including the Liverpool Echo) report today that Brendan Rodgers is eyeing a move for Shaqiri, with one report claiming:
"Liverpool are ready to approach Bayern Munich to discuss a deal for winger Xherdan Shaqiri.
"Liverpool believe they are in pole position [and] are keen on a cash deal [but] Bayern would be interested in loaning him out.
"Rodgers would be willing to pay up to £20million to get his man".
Shaqiri - recently hailed as 'world class' by Munich's Sporting Director Mattias Sammer - made only 17 starts for Bayern last season, and the €37 signing of Mario Gotze will make it even tougher for the Swiss star to establish himself in the first team.
Not that the arrival of Gotze fazes Shaqiri, though. In an interview last week, he dismissed suggestions that his place in the team may be under threat. He told Bayern's official website:
"It's not a problem, because we could play together. At the end of the day, it's the coach’s decision."
Shaqiri's frustration at being a bit-part player is, however, palpable, and in the same interview, he made it clear that he wants things to change next season:
"I'm now looking to take the next step, and I want to start the important matches"
The young attacker also hailed Pep Guardiola's impact on the club:
"I really like his [Guardiola's] training sessions. I like the football we're playing. After all, I love attacking play."
Even if Shaqiri is behind in the pecking order, he's managed by one of the world's great managers, and plays with some of the world's best players, so it seems unlikely that he'd want to leave Bayern any time soon.
Having said that, with the World Cup looming, he'll surely want to feature as much as possible to cement his place in the Switzerland side, and he'll almost certainly play more at Liverpool than Bayern. Stats for last season:
* 9 goals/12 assists in 38 appearances.
A viable alternative to Mkhitaryan?
Jaimie Kanwar
NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)
Multiple sources in the Germany and the UK (including the Liverpool Echo) report today that Brendan Rodgers is eyeing a move for Shaqiri, with one report claiming:
"Liverpool are ready to approach Bayern Munich to discuss a deal for winger Xherdan Shaqiri.
"Liverpool believe they are in pole position [and] are keen on a cash deal [but] Bayern would be interested in loaning him out.
"Rodgers would be willing to pay up to £20million to get his man".
Shaqiri - recently hailed as 'world class' by Munich's Sporting Director Mattias Sammer - made only 17 starts for Bayern last season, and the €37 signing of Mario Gotze will make it even tougher for the Swiss star to establish himself in the first team.
Not that the arrival of Gotze fazes Shaqiri, though. In an interview last week, he dismissed suggestions that his place in the team may be under threat. He told Bayern's official website:
"It's not a problem, because we could play together. At the end of the day, it's the coach’s decision."
Shaqiri's frustration at being a bit-part player is, however, palpable, and in the same interview, he made it clear that he wants things to change next season:
"I'm now looking to take the next step, and I want to start the important matches"
The young attacker also hailed Pep Guardiola's impact on the club:
"I really like his [Guardiola's] training sessions. I like the football we're playing. After all, I love attacking play."
Even if Shaqiri is behind in the pecking order, he's managed by one of the world's great managers, and plays with some of the world's best players, so it seems unlikely that he'd want to leave Bayern any time soon.
Having said that, with the World Cup looming, he'll surely want to feature as much as possible to cement his place in the Switzerland side, and he'll almost certainly play more at Liverpool than Bayern. Stats for last season:
* 9 goals/12 assists in 38 appearances.
A viable alternative to Mkhitaryan?
Jaimie Kanwar
NOTE: Please stick to the Comment Policy (Click to read)
Even on loan, he would be a good addition, not seen loads of him but what i have seen i have been impressed, surely a better option than downing on the right side :)
ReplyDeleteyes because Switzerland have alot of replacements for shaqiri
ReplyDeleteThey might have at the end of the season, someone might take their chance.
ReplyDeleteI would love him to come has all the attributes to go onto become a top top player - strong,quick, skillful, intelligent and still young - cant see it happening, but would have him over eriksen as seems more comfortable on the wing then CE
ReplyDeleteWhen are our transfers going to address the issues of physicality or rather lack thereof. We have enough wingers for now and spending 20 mil on one makes no sense. DMF is a position we need to address.
ReplyDeleteGreat little player but I can`t see Munich selling him.
ReplyDeleteid be amazed if this deal happened.....
ReplyDeleteI love the way you drop " I argued we should sign him" into your article after the first sentence. wow. Someone has an inflated ego me thinks!!! :)
ReplyDeleteIn all seriousness he is a good player.
I worry about his reputation for being greedy though>>>>
20million and him for suarez sounds good
ReplyDeleterogers has set his stall out in that dept,,,,gerrard has just signed an extension ....courtino will start in the middle 3 ...that leaves allen.hendo and lucas fighting for the defensive position...and my money is edging towards allen.........anyone with half a brain can see this is riddled with flaws ....
ReplyDeletenot a bad idea billy
ReplyDeleteHe obviously never will be a direct replacement for Suarez, but given a couple of seasons he is one that has the quality to get there. The guy is class. I am a patient man, and can wait another season.. Ship him in Ayre :)
ReplyDeleteAllen will not start over Lucas at DM.
ReplyDeleteNow if we don't play with a formation requiring a DM, I could see Allen starting over Lucas.
But I don't envision that happening, especially given our defensive lapses last season. Our defense, with the high line, needs the added support that a player like Lucas can provide.
I don't think it's any coincidence that our performances got better as Lucas got healthier. Just as the year before, our performances got worse after Lucas tore his ACL.
Barcelona doesn't believe in physicality, and Liverpool is following the Barca model. Stockpile tricky players and play keepaway - and wait for the opposition to get impatient and make a mistake you can pounce on.
ReplyDeleteIn a world of logic lucas would start every time. over Allen in that role....but dont be surprised if rogers trys to sneek him in for games he thinks are winnable or games we are coasting in
ReplyDeleteOur defence got better when Skrtel was sent to the bench and Carra took his place.
ReplyDeleteLucas is a very good player but he is nowhere near the player before he got injured.
but thats still twice the player Allen is
ReplyDeleteThat is your opinion. If they were both defensive midfielders then I would be happy to make a comparison.
ReplyDeleteWell they got to sell or loan one or two players at least surely? They are well stocked in midfield, whether it be centrally or wide. But I have a feeling they will more likely sell or loan out one of the more central players, rather than a wide player, as they are more stocked in central positions. So I don't think they will let of Shaqiri yet, even though would like to see him here.
ReplyDeletesorry my mistake i forgot allen is neither a defensive or attacking midfielder.....if we had another player who just passed it 5 yards sideways i would then have a player to compare him to....the metronome lol you couldn't make it up
ReplyDeleteMake what up?
ReplyDeleteJust to clear this up, Allen stats prove his passing is more forward than sides ways or backwards. Who ever says "he only passes sideways" is wrong.
ReplyDeleteExcellent player and would be a valuable addition but i dont see guardiola sanctioning his sale. He has too much talent and more potential than most. A loan deal would be a good bit of business.
ReplyDeleteIm loving the message Ian Ayre is sending out re: Suarez
ReplyDeleteBayern will only let him go on loan
ReplyDeleteTough one, from Bayern to LFC. Improbable but not impossible.
ReplyDeleteif you say so .....no assists last year so im not sure who he was passing forward to
ReplyDeletea lego house
ReplyDeleteI was all set to say "No" until I saw the No. 23 on his back.
ReplyDeleteAnybody that chooses #23 is ok in my books!
I think he did( not so sure tho) but he was playing CDM most of the time.
ReplyDeleteI would prefer the Brazilian Bernard. Have you seen his videos?! Check out "Bernard Skills" on the Tube. ( I know those vids are not the be all and end all!) but, bloody hell!
ReplyDeleteThe kid is GOOD!!
Looks even better than Coutinho did in his video compilations!
Now wouldn't he be an amazing replacement for downing? And for the same price? I need to stop...I'll do myself an injury thinking about that idiotic waste of money
ReplyDeleteYou mean pandering to a player who has repeatedly disrespected the club over the last month by touting himself out to other clubs? I don't see how that's positive; it's LFC being weak. Again. A regular feature under Ayre's 'leadership'.
ReplyDeleteYes but hes 5 ft 4...while Shagiri is only a few inches taller he's a little tank,Bernard is a very exciting prospect no doubt and I would love to see him in red ( I'd love to see a lot of players in red!!) but his size could be an issue,sure some said the same about Coutinho but Bernard is smaller then Coutinho.
ReplyDeleteIm not sure we are looking to replace suarez with one player, Everyone were getting from midfield up are goal scorers. I cant see to many draws this season
ReplyDeleteI wish people would shut up with this OMG I CANT BELIEVE IT we're going for a 20 million winger blah blah blah we need a CB we need a DMF, stfu BR and IA know exactly what they need and are getting the deals as they come, this is BIG MONEY business, you don't complete it the same as buying a mars bar from the shop
ReplyDelete20 million on a winger? Wasn't so long we was linked with players like atsu and chadil lol
ReplyDeleteWell with gotze and thiago is there any room for him? And I can't even be bothered to name all the other world class midfielders bayern have, it is possible...
ReplyDeleteYhh Bernard is good but erikson is better in my opinion. Be good to have another Dane in the club, already got a few brazillians, and I'm pretty sure Porto are faves to sign him
ReplyDeleteWanted us to sign him last season, think he'd be great. He's like the Swiss Hazard. Just my opinion, but I don't see this signing happening. Think he hasn't set the world alight mainly due to lack of appearances, we already have Assaidi in the same boat here.
ReplyDeleteHow is that being weak? This is a thinking mans game and the way I read between the lines is
ReplyDelete1. LFC is not desperate to sell Suarez with 3 years left on contract.
2. If a team want him, they need to cough up the sum that LFC wants.
This is what Daniel Levy has been doing for years and the reason why Tottenham have sold so well.
Can you also state me some examples of LFC being weak under Ayre?
There's nothing wrong with that though... get the guy some experience against lesser competition instead of throwing him to the wolves.
ReplyDeleteYou're absolutely correct. The hope is that Lucas is getting back to that, and that Skrtel can refind his mojo from two seasons ago.
ReplyDeleteI might be wrong but i think if Suarez asks to leave then he veto's any money owed in loyalty bonus if he goes and by taking a firm stance that hes not for sale, kind of like Daniel Levy at tottenham, i think it ensures we get the best possible price for him if he goes. I understand though, he has been a little ho whilst away and it is out of order, forgetting that i think Ayre is doing the best thing. If we make it obvious we want rid i dont think we could get the 40/50 million we would surely want.
ReplyDelete___________ Suarez / Aspas_______________
ReplyDeleteCortiniho / Sterling -------------------- Sturridge / Downing
----- Hendeson /Alberto --------------- Gerrard/ ?
------------------------ Lucus / Allan---------------------------
Enrique -------- Agger------- Toure/Skertel Johnson/kelly
You can see from this where the space is in the team That is a Playmaker in midfield a Left Back and a CB to cover Agger
We have a summer budget still intact to bring in these players in 3 positions shaqiri Cissokho and the Greek would do it if Suarez goes the Higuane as a replacement and say £20m would allow for further upgrades these players don't have to stick to the positions I have them in they are all interchangeable which is the whole idea Rodgers is trying to establish we would still have the likes of Borini and Ibe etc able to come in and play games as required without having to change the way the team plays
Ned to og all in for him. Wathelet a lot of the euro u-21 in Denmark in 2011 and he Was by far the Best player of the competion. Looked so strong in every aspect of the game.
ReplyDeleteall these names are good? but what i they waiting for.
ReplyDeleteGo all in for Thisted guy. SAw alot of games during euro-21 in Denmark live and he Was by far the Best player of the competion. Strong in every aspect of the game. Except heading of course.
ReplyDeleteWe have the advantageous position here. He's under contract for 3 more years. We have handled this whole saga well since he came out and talked about Real Madrid.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jaimie in the sense that the club does pander a bit too much to its star players. If I hear Brendan Rodgers talk about how "outstanding" we were, I'm going to be sick.
But I feel the club has handled this latest Suarez issue well overall.
Honestly I think you think a team needs to be adaptable. We do not need to be a physical team but we can not be bullied by the likes of Stoke. We just need to add some more physical players not necessarily change our playing styles.
ReplyDeleteMkhitaryan, Eriksson, Shaqiri ... if they are all genuine Liverpool targets then I'm pretty happy with the kind of player being identified by the scouting team. Rodgers said that he was looking for likely one more attacking midfielder and two more defenders. It seems the attacking mid will be our season "marquee" signing given the prices these guys are demanding. To be honest I'm not concerned who it ends up being, so long as we do actually make the signing. If we get to the end of the window and none of these linked attacking midfielders end up at the team then I think we can, to quote JK, call it a "transfer fail".
ReplyDeleteI still have a feeling that there is a big defensive signing in the works and we won't get word of it until the deal is close. We'll be OK without one, I have more confidence in our defensive unit than others. I still rate Skrtel, Agger has always been class and Toure will play plenty of minutes. But an injury to one or two of those players could really hurt us. One more defender who can play maybe a couple of positions across the line would be great. We simply can't rely on Kelly, he's not yet match fit and could disintegrate as soon as he steps on the pitch. The other young guys are prospects, not certainties.
He is a must buy target for Liverpool. Playing XI 'llsignificantly improv if he 'll join the club. Welldone to our scout team as-we. Get him for whatever it costs YNWA.
ReplyDeleteThis is what i'd do...Suarez for shaqiri+25 mil. Use 25 on eriksen and alderwiereld. Use original kitty for 10-15 mil striker in case sturridge and aspas are unavailable for some reason (tbh borini isnt reliable and Yesil needs 1-2 years) and Cissokho(5 mil?)/backup LB. Out=pacheco, spearo, downing. Use remaining kitty+ 10-12 from sales for DM. Would create solid squad with HUGE potential.
ReplyDeleteBarca, have been exposed.
ReplyDeleteGet this prik off our books, he is a liability, and a SHAME on LFC.
ReplyDeleteI am/was his biggest admirer, but now its a choice, Suarez or LFC. I choose the latter.
I understand if we have to play hardball about his final destination, get this dickhead out of LFC, he is taking the Club down on a daily basis. I now believe the biting incident was his first attempt to leave. Get this cancer out of our club.
After 3 CLs and 5 La Liga crowns in 6 years! How I'd love LFC to be exposed like that!!
ReplyDeletefunny that max says hes not a CDM....so if thats the case why not get rid and buy another player who is that we IMO are desperately short of
ReplyDeletebut we are in liverpool ..so perhaps we are trying to get the panto cast together for ken dodds diddy men...well be looking to sign dicky mint next
ReplyDeletethe problem is we did that last year and got drubbed a couple of times
ReplyDeleteWe'll only be linked to him, somebody else will sign him..end of august we'll end up with some new faces we've never heard or seen..with the hope that they'll be Cautinhos and not Allens..
ReplyDeleteA bit part player for Bayern?, and you think Liverpool should pay £20 for him?, are you being serious???.
ReplyDeleteHe isn't. But he was played there and done well,
ReplyDeleteYes, he could be a very nice addition on the wings for LFC but I do not justify with the price tag. Just because the deal for Mkhitaryan was above 20 doesn't mean the player we're approaching also needs to be placed in the same price range.
ReplyDeleteHe's a young lad who when playing for Swansea took defenses apart with his passing ability, so he's proved he can more than compete at PL level........ He's gone from being 1 of the main figures at the Swans and feeling comfortable, to becoming a young talent in an established dressing room, add to that the pressure of playing for such a Historic club like LFC and he's bound to be unsettled and feeling the pressure......... And with fans like yourself running him down left, right & centre the lad stands no chance! Give him a break and have some faith as not everyone settles in straight away..... Seen it happen many times in my playing days! LFC and its fans are famous for our Loyalty, passion and keeping the faith, so try not to lose yours, hey?
ReplyDeleteI think he would be a great option. We should have signed him before he went to Bayern.
ReplyDeleteI would even take him on loan.
38 appearances, in the best team in Europe is hardly a bit part player.
ReplyDeletegilstrap a fan lolol he doesn't even know who our manager is ffs
ReplyDeleteMost of them were sub appearances.
ReplyDeleteHe's a fighter!
ReplyDeleteMaybe 12-15m at most?
ReplyDeleteYea I gathered that. But its still 38 appearances. For me a bit part player would make up to about 20.
ReplyDeleteAnd to be fair to him getting 9 goals and 12 assists as a sub is pretty good.
liverpool should offer suarez to bayern for this guy. i kinda met patrice evra today, so it would make that less awkward if this guy left the club soon, lol.
ReplyDeletelol well if they do the business,get the diddy men in :D
ReplyDeleteThe more I read this sort of reports, I get frustrated. HM is bought 23mn, Shakhiri priced at 20mn, Eriksen for 15mn & 2 years back, we paid 20mn for Downing, when Negrado was available for 17mn, Hulk for 18mn, Mata for 21mn, Jackson Martinez for 12mn & so on.
ReplyDeleteOne bad decision of appointing a Manager out of a decade of wilderness pushed us at lest 5 years back.
What he means by being exposed is that a physically more dominant team who press them very hard can beat them. Because they have had the exact same style for so long and it was so effective they no loner have a plan B. That's why they couldn't even compete with Bayern, were beaten in the San Siro and Chelsea knocked them out 2 years ago. They haven't been exposed so much as teams figured out a way to play them effectively, and due to the previous success they never needed a plan B and thus when teams are playing effectively against them, unless we are talking about a moment of magic from one of their world class stars they struggle. I don't think it's fair to say they've been exposed however.
ReplyDeleteNone of the obvious signing that LFC should make will happen. Benard, eriksen, shaqiri etc. all available but we won't follow up our interest.
ReplyDeletespare me the super fan speeches Ive heard it all before.....
ReplyDeleteits some welsh guys called rogers i think....but no doubt a super fan like yourself will enlighten me
ReplyDeleteIf he's that good he won't join us and what's more Bayern wouldn't let him go. A loan is the only option as Bayern are a massive up and coming club unlike us I'm afraid to say!
ReplyDeleteId rather listen to Brendan being positive after a good performance than someone trying to con me that we played well when we were rubbish as has happened in the past.
ReplyDeleteIf Allen has a blinding season this year would you be so quick to sing his praises, as you are to run him down before he has even been given a proper chance to shine??
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that they set the bar so high that we do not expect off days from the likes of Iniesta and Xavi. Add to that the fact that Bayern played like a well oiled machine and had the best season possible, also the injuries at the back and changes in management left them jaded. But still they regained the La Liga, I am not making excuses for them because I feel Bayern were the better team by a mile and deserved to win, but to say they were exposed is too harsh. They have dominated each and every game from start to finish in the last 4 years with their style and you can't take that away. The way Real Madrid performed last, do we say that counter attacking football has been exposed? No. In the same way Tiki Taka can't be over, you just have to execute it the right way with the right personnel.
ReplyDeleteWhat because Russ puts forward a valid counter argument to yours?
ReplyDeleteAllen needs to be given another season to judge his worth. Maybe you'll be right Gilstrap and he never quite makes the grade (and I'm sure you'll rejoice in his failure), but the first month of the 2012/13 season and his season with Swansea in the PL suggest he has more than a 50/50 chance of proving his worth.
To sum it up - Lucas and Henderson